Picking Up the Pieces
by Sanru
Summary: I can’t remember anything and nothing is making any sense. All I know is that I’m a giant mutant turtle and that there are other mutant turtles doing everything they can to keep me safe. Why are they so familiar, anyways?
1. Chapter 1: Escape

**Picking up the Pieces**

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_I was watching some of the old eighties' turtles the other day and noticed a reoccurring theme that kept popping up that I just had to write about. The only difference is that I'm writing from one of the turtles' perspectives when it usually happened to the Shredder in the old cartoon. This is also going to be my first 2007 universe story so keep that in mind as I write._

_There is also going to be OC-ness in the turtle's POV that I'm writing in but you have to keep in mind what he's going through. There is going to be some humor and action in this but mostly it's a family and drama story._

_Enjoy ;) _

Chapter One: Escape

W-What happened?

My mind is fuzzy and there is a faint buzzing noise in my ears that was very annoying. I scrunched up my face when I realized just how annoying it was, like there was a bee buzzing around in both of my ears.

That and it's cold in here. It's way to cold in here to be good for my health. It's like I'm in a freezer or something. I have to get up and get moving. I needed to do something to help generate heat and warm myself back up.

But first I have to get up

I hurt, god do I hurt. Every one of my joints ache, my muscles tremble with even the slightest movement, and my head throbs in time with my heartbeat. A rancid taste fills my mouth. I'm horrified at how much energy it seems to take to swallow. I moan weakly as I force my eyes open to stare off into space.

For a moment I don't see anything, just the swirls of colors that are blurred at the edges. I force myself to blink several times trying to make the colors slow down or better yet go away altogether. Eventually they do leave and I find myself alone, laying flat on my back in a bare metal room. There is a single bare light bulb hanging from the ceiling barely putting out ten watts of light casting the room in a dim gloom.

Where am I?

How did I get here?

Who am I?

That was about the time I decided I was in real trouble. I couldn't remember anything, not even my own name. All I knew was that I was me and I was in a cold, metal room that had no windows and a door that didn't have a handle. I only knew it was a door because of the outline on the wall. It almost looked like I was in a large metal box.

The only thing I did know was that I wasn't supposed to be here. There was something about this place that didn't sit quite right with my stomach. It was almost as if I had a voice in my head telling me to run, to get away from there, but where was I to go? I somehow knew I had a home but I didn't know where Home was.

I force myself to sit up. My joints creak and pop as if I've been laying down for a very long time and my head throbs painfully. I wonder if I have a migraine or a concussion. I'm pretty sure I have amnesia. At least I think its called amnesia. Either way something is definitely wrong with my mind that's for sure. Nothing seems to make any sense. I go to stand up only to fall on my hands and knees and throw up.

Yup, something is most definitely wrong.

I stay still for a few minutes just holding my head and ignoring the smell of gastric juices and whatever the hell I had eaten last. Looks really liquidy, like I haven't eaten anything soli… okay, let's not think about that. My stomach is tipsy enough as it is and looking at the pile –or puddle in this case- really isn't helping much.

I force myself to crawl away from the mess I just made, muscles and joints complaining the whole way. Using the wall as a support I lean back against it and look around the small room. The longer I'm here the more I want to leave and go Home. Where ever that is.

It's… down? Home is down. Down where? One of my hands creeps up to hold my chin as I think. Yup, Home is definitely down but I don't know how far down Home is. Or what exactly does down mean. Should I be going down the block, continent, or down the hall?

I took the hand away from my chin and held it to my suddenly throbbing head. That had required a little more thinking then I was capable of at the moment. I took a shaky breath and held my stomach with my other hand as it turned unpleasantly. I have to get out of there.

How am I going to get out of here? Everything looks like solid steel and there's no handle on the door. I could try breaking it down or something but it could very well be locked and then I would only hurt myself. Can I even break down a door?

At the very least I should go over and see if I can push it open. I force myself to stand using the wall to help me up. I stay leaning against the wall for a moment as my legs tremble underneath me. All I have to do is walk over to the other side of the room and push on the door. It might just swing open. Of course I had crawled over to the wall farthest away from the door in the first place. At least I don't have to worry about stepping around the puddle I left. It's off to one side and I think I can walk in a semi straight line so I don't have to worry about stepping in it.

A manage two steps before my knees buckled on me. I fall off to the side –thankfully not into the puddle of puke- and land hard on my side. A cry escapes my lips as my aching head cracks on the hard floor. That hit seemed to knock something loose because no sooner then I hit then the memory of a voice fills my head.

_My sons, tonight our training shall focus on combining two essential disciplines. The way of silence-_

Both my hands were over my mouth stifling any more sounds that might come forth. My mind was whirling. Who said that? I was his son? I have brothers? He did use the plural form of the word so at least I know I have at least a brother and a father. They had to be at Home. Were they looking for me? Or was I just in the room when he was taking to his sons?

_-and the way of invisibility._

Despite my aches and pains I move quickly, rolling myself over so that the wall is to my back. I press against it flattening myself and looking around for someplace to hide. It takes a second for my mind to catch up to my body and inform me that there was no where to hide and I was alone so there was no reason to panic. I listen to see if someone had heard me and was coming to investigate but all I heard was my own heart thumping widly against my chest.

It takes me a while to get my heart and breathing back under control. I sit against the wall holding my head which has starting throbbing badly again. I hope this doesn't happen every time I remember something. Knowing my luck it probably will. I glance over to the door again knowing I have to at least try it but deciding against walking this time.

I crawl over to the door on my hands and knees. I push at it on both sides but it doesn't budge. I sigh and turn myself around so I'm sitting back against the door. At least now I know that it's locked or there is something barricading it. It just means that I really am trapped in this room.

Before I have a chance to really begin to panic a slight noise fills the air. It sounds like something is scratching against the metal. I look around the room trying to discern where the sound is coming from. It's very faint. I begin to crawl around the room listening after every step forward for the sound.

Finally I come to a part of the wall where the noise seems to be the loudest. Crouching in front of the wall I begin to run my hands over the cool surface looking for anything that might prove useful to helping me escape. If there is noise coming from behind it then it's a safe bet that there is empty space behind the wall as well. I push against it and to my delight the wall gives slightly under my weight.

I begin fighting with the wall, pushing on it in different places trying to get an idea of the size of the hole on the other side of the wall. If it was too small for me to fit through then I could abandon this entire endeavor. However I found that there was at least a two and a half foot square of empty space on the other side of the wall. Now I just had to figure out a way to remove the metal plating to see what I had found. Hopefully, it was a way out.

I run my hands around the edges looking for some kind of fastening. The plate can't just be glued to the supports. It's too heavy for that. There are a series of screws all but hidden from view because of the dim light in the room. I wish I had a screwdriver but since I didn't have one in the room or on me I settled for trying to twist the screws off with my finger tips. It's a long and tedious process that tears up my fingers but after a while I'm shifting the metal sheet off to the side revealing a long tunnel that leads off into the darkness.

A squeak makes me look down to my little helper. It's a small rat that quickly scurries away from me into the tunnel. I stare after it with the unsettling thought that there had been something familiar about that rat but there was something missing. Several somethings actually. I think that the rat was supposed to be taller. Maybe a little fatter? Definitely bigger somehow. And he should be drinking tea in a robe.

Now I know something is wrong with my head.

I shake my head banishing that crazy thought. Whoever heard of a rat wearing a robe and drinking tea, anyways? I turn back to the vent and put my hand down on the metal floor, pushing down to test its strength. It feels like its strong enough to hold me up. I tentatively crawl inside, hoping that the rat won't mind the intrusion and whap me with his walking stick. Gah! Stop thinking about that stupid rat! I try and make as little noise as possible as I crawl on. I don't want anyone to realize that I was able to get out of that metal box.

This tunnel just seems to go on and on forever. It has to be some kind of air duct that had been covered over for my 'stay' in that metal room. Who would do this to me anyways? I'm a sentient life form after all. I have rights -at least I think I do- and it isn't right to be locked up in a small metal room for who knows how long sick to my stomach. Whoever locked me in there might have been the one to give me amnesia. If I ever find out who did this to me they better be ready to apologize or I'll… I'll…

I'm not really sure what I would do but they won't like it.

I was so caught up in my thoughts that when my hand went down and kept going through where the floor was suppose to be I let out a rather embarrassing sound as I fell through the hole in the floor. I didn't have time to try and catch myself as I went headfirst through the opening. It had just happened so fast. One minute I was on all four crawling along the next I was falling.

As I fell down the shaft I kept bumping and skidding along the metal sides. They had to be made out a thin sheet of metal because they bounced and bowed as I hit them. They snapped back into their original shape after I had past with weird bangs, bongs and warping sounds. I was making enough noise for everyone in the building to hear me.

I was able to get my arms up –or down- around my head to protect it because I knew that the end of the shaft was eventually coming up. I had barely thought that thought when I hit the bottom forcibly with a loud 'thunk'. My shoulders and arms took most of the weight in the fall and even though they now hurt at least my poor head hadn't been abused any more. I probably would have broken my neck if I had landed on my head.

I started to twist around, trying to get out of the uncomfortable position I had gotten myself into. I was pushing down on the vent floor to lift up my shoulders a bit so I could get a better look around when there was a grating 'pop' and the flooring just fell away again. I barely had time to gasp as I entered free fall before my right side was slamming into something before flipping over and landing on the floor. There were crashes and thumps all around me as stuff fell off the shelving I had hit. I lay there covering my head as best I could, waiting for the last object to come crashing down. A creaking noise catches my attention and I look up to see the shelf tottering back and forth. This could get ugly. I scrambled to my feet and am able to do what must have been this crazy looking half run-scamper to get out from under the shelf. It lands were I had been laying a moment before with a resounding crash.

I sit there for a moment before struggling to my feet despite my aches and pains. Someone had to have heard that and if I wanted to get away from here I had to be gone now. I'm finally able to get to my feet only to waver slightly and stumble off to the side. My aching right side collides with another table that I latch onto and use to steady myself. I hear the instruments and glass rock with the impact and look over the table to see what was on it with a passing interest. There was one thing on the table that seemed out of place among the chemistry set that was on the on the table.

It was a simple wooden pole. The only special thing about it was that there was a purple ribbion or something wrapped around the middle part of it. Without even thinking about it I reached over and grabbed the middle of the ribbon portion and pick the pole up. The feeling and weight of it seems so familiar it's almost creepy. I step back away from the table, flip it over the back of my hand and then tuck it up and over my shoulder, sliding it down my back until it catches on something. A gentle push and it easily slipped into something that fixes it to my back.

It's not until I'm starting to move away from the table and towards the door that what I just did caught up to me. How did I know to flip it over my shoulder? Why was there a holster for it on my back? How did I flip it over my hand without breaking anything or sending it end over end across the room? I crane my head around and looked at the part peeking up over my shoulder. "Do you belong to me or something?" I ask it as if it could actually talk back to me. Great. First rats' drinking tea in bath robes with walking sticks and now talking poles. I really am going insane.

I started back towards the door wanting nothing more then to get away from this room and building as soon as possible. I felt safer with the pole on my back. I begin to scan over the room, looking for anything that might help me get away. Everything in the room appeared to have come from a sciencefiction movie and an emergency room. My eyes fell on one of those examination tables that are kept in the ER with straps on it and several monitor machines setting nearby. It was under one of those large florescent ligh-

_-The light was bright, glaring down on me harshly like it was trying to burn through my skin. I was strapped to the table way too tight. I could barely feel my hands or feet anymore. There was an oxygen mask over my face giving me a constant stream of something other then oxygen. There was a funny smell to the air and I felt distant, distracted and disoriented. There was several beeps coming from somewhere above my head all at different pitches, probably monitoring different body functions._

_A man in a surgical gown and mask suddenly leaned over me. I tried to turn my head towards him but there was something holding my head still and it seemed to take too much energy to move anyways. In one of his plastic gloved hands was a large needle filled with a yellowish green liquid. He snapped out the air bubbles and then pulled the skin on my neck taut. He pressed the needle deep into the artery in my neck and injected the contents. It hurt. I made a weak noise of disgust as the man stepped away. I had to get out of here before they di-_

I came back to myself laying on my abused right side and holding my suddenly throbbing head. I had my knees pulled up to my chest, curling myself into a fetal position that my side liked even less then me laying on it. My hands and arms were wrapped aroud my head, covering most it, protecting it from the intense throb that was coming from inside. There was a thin layer of sweat on my skin and I was trembling badly.

I forced myself to crawl back to my feet. One hand was clutching at my right side the other was holding my head. I had to get out of here. That... vision or whatever it was only confirmed my suspicion that this wasn't a friendly place and the farther I was from it the safer I was going to be. I move towards the door again with a renewed sense of purpose and determination. It's high time I blew this joint.

I had barely taken three steps towards the door when a commotion came from the other side of the door. It was a loud banging sound like a door had been thrown open and bounced off the wall. The banging sound was followed by hurried foot steps as several people rushed over the tiled floor. By the sounds of it they were heading for this room. I needed another way out fast.

My eyes looked aroud the room for another door but to no avail. There was only one way in and out of that room. There was a rod iron railing out one of the windows, though. Anyway out would do right now. I ran as silently as I could across the room to the window and forced it open. I was able to crawl through and slid it close when the door to the room I had just left was thrown open. I didn't stick around to see if anyone would notice me. I went up the closest pair of stairs as quickly as I could and not wiggle the fire escape to much.

I reached the roof hurting bad and breathing as hard as I could without having my side screaming at me. I looked around for a way off the roof but other then the escape I had just come up and the stairwell shed I didn't see any way down. Would it do me any go to try and sneak through the building by going down the stairs? Before I could act on that thought, the door was opened and six men came flying out of the opening.

They were wearing an all black body suit that even went up and over their heads and covering their faces. They had to be wearing some form of goggles because their eyes seemed to glow a dull red. There was some form of gray boots that went up to their knees. Actually it looked like they were wearing a long tunic or something that was trimmed in gray with shoulder pads. I guess they are men in tights or something. A sword was peeking up over their shoulders that I didn't want to know if they could use or not.

The one at the front of the pack made a sudden hand gesture and one of the ninjas behind him vanished back down the stairwell while the rest came at me. I tured and bolted in the other direction. There was no way they were going to get me without chasing me half way across whatever city I was in.

I jumped across a gap that was between the building I was on and the other building across the alley without a thought, reaching for the fire escape that was over there. My hands easily caught the railing and took my weight as my legs came up. I planted my feet on either side of my hands. I then stood and jumped at the same time. Springing myself up to the next railing on the landing above me. I went landing by landing up to the last landing where I simply hopped over the railing to stand on the platform.

Wait a second. How did I do that?

I looked back down the way I had come to see if I had actually done what I thought only to see the... um... Black Men coming up the same way I had come. They were a bit slower then I had been but they were still on their way. I stumbled backwards and plaster myself against the wall. How can they do that? How can I? I feel something like a pipe against my arm and look to the ladder next to me. I'll have to figure this out later, right now I had to get away.

I grabbed the ladder and scrambled up it, hitting the roof at a dead run. The Black Men may have been slower going up the side of the buiding then me but they made up for it as they ran over the roof after me. They were all but on top of me and I was barely to the other side of the roof!

Okay, stop paying attention to them and try to figure out how to get away from them. The building I was heading towards was higher then the one I was on but it didn't have a fire escape on the side facing me. Darn. There was a water tower on this roof, though.

I run towards it with out a second thought. I head underneath it and jump up to the highest parallel support I can reach on the other side. Using the support like it was a parallel bar I flip myself up and over it to build up speed. When I come back around I let go when my feet were slightly above the ledge of the building I was going for. I curl myself into a somersault and flip through the air. After several flips I uncurl ready for a text book landing on the roof only to have the wind knocked out of me when my stomach slammed into the ledge that went around the roof.

Guess I needed to let go a second later.

My hands scramble for purchase as I struggled to breath. I am sure that my side has at least one or two cracked ribs by now. My fingers finally catch on something and I'm able to scramble over the edge. I roll and scramble on my hands and knees for a moment before getting back to my feet and heading across the roof. I had definitely slowed down from that little accident but at least it looks like the next building over is lower then this one. Finally a stroke of luck.

I jumped over the small gap between the buildings only to realize that it was a bit of a long drop then I thought. It was a good ten feet down. Despite the fact that I could easily break an ankle from this height I remained eerily calm. I landed and dropped right into a roll, knocking down the force of the impact a lot. I came out of the roll onto my feet. Wow, I rock!

I didn't get a chance to move forward again because one of the Black Men suddenly landed in front of me. I quickly glanced around to see that his friends had landed around me too. Great, now I trapped. I watch as they all pull their swords out and point them towards me. I gulp noisily. Now what?

The Black Man in front of me charged me with the sword pointed at me as if he was going to run me through. My hand suddenly went up and over my shoulder, clutching the pole I had picked up off the table back in the lab, pulling it free and catching the charging Black Man in the face with the end. He went down hard but I had already dismissed him, swing the back end of the staff back and catching the Black Man coming in from behind me just below the tip of the sternum. He went down too but I was more focused on the last three Black Men.

I spun the staff around and caught a blade that had been descending towards my head and snap kicked the Black Man in the chin sending him to the ground. Still following through with the kick, I twisted myself around and caught another sword with my staff. I then snapped the other end over, catching him in the side of the head. I went with the momentum of the strike and did a barrel roll in the air avoiding the strike from the last Black Man as he lunged. I easily landed on my feet and brought the pole around blocking a downward slash aimed at my right shoulder. Then I blocked a horizontal strike aimed at my stomach with the pole and blocked a punch aimed at my face with my wrist before lashing out at his unprotected face. He went down bonelessly to the rooftop after the brutal palm strike I delivered to his chin. I glanced around to make sure they were all down before reality crashed down on me.

How did I do that!?

I looked at the way I had come. There is no way I could have been able to move that easily over the roof tops. I looked down at the Black Men littering the ground around me and there is no way I know how to do this much damage. Well... I guess I do... this is insane. I catch a look at myself in one of the blades and blink. Bending down I pick it up before standing back up. I angle it so I can look at my face. I thought I sa-

...

I'M A GIANT TURTLE!!


	2. Chapter 2: In Search of Home

**Picking Up the Pieces**

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Before anyone says anything some of the spelling mistakes are intentional. You'll see what I mean when you read this. For the rest of the mistakes I apologize in advance but I'm going to be without internet for the next week and wanted to get this up before then. Hopefully by next Friday I'll be back online but it would be nice if it would be sooner._

Chapter Two: In Search of Home

Okay. Calm down. Close your eyes and take deep breaths. That's it, relax. It's going to be okay. This is all nothing more then a bad dream. A very bad dream. The worst I have ever had. Or at least can remember having. I take one more deep breath before opening my eyes and looking at my reflecti-

AAAAAHHHHH!!

Nope, not a dream. I really am a giant turtle. I stare at my reflection in horror. I even have a dull green rounded face. Well, it may be a brighter green in direct light. It's a little hard to tell with such poor lighting in the area. There is a lit up billboard over there selling hair care products or something. Maybe if I go over to it there will be enough light to figure out what shade of green I act-

Okay, stop obsessing over your skin color. You have more important things to figure out.

It's hard not to think about what I am. There is no doubt about it that I am a giant turtle. I even have a shell. I twist my arm over my shoulder and rap on it with my knuckles to prove to myself that it is indeed a real shell. My hands have two over sized fingers and thumb. Great. Just great. I'm a freak of nature.

I'm also mostly naked. The closest things I have to clothes are knee pads, elbow pads, and these wrist wrap thingies that don't seem to have any functional purpose other then being there. I'm wearing a simple belt that is knotted together funny and is the same dirty brown color as everything else I'm wearing. Well the mask I'm wearing is purple with these long tails that fall to about the middle of my back… err… shell. I furrow my brow as I look at my reflection. The mask makes me look a lot more threatening and intimidating.

But why purple?

One of the Black Men laying at my feet suddenly moans and reminds me that this isn't the best place to be looking at my reflection. I was anything but safe right now. I may have been able to defeat the first wave of Black Men but their buddy had no doubt gone to get help. I could be up to my elbows in Black Men at any moment now. I drop the sword and tuck the staff back over my shoulder into its holder. It's time for some cross roof top sprinting.

I don't know how long I have been running over the rooftops but it had to at least be an hour or two. My only real concern is putting as much distance as possible between me and the building the Black Men had kept me in. There was a good chance that that building is their headquarters. I'm so caught up in getting away that I'm not paying that much attention to where I'm going or how my feet are falling in front of me. When my foot suddenly catches on a pipe going across the roof I'm completely caught off guard and fall to the ground knocking the wind out of my and making the constant dull ache in my side flair up again.

Ow.

When I'm able to pull a little air into my tortured lungs, I twist myself around so that I'm sitting in the center of the roof rather then sprawled out on it. I take a moment to glare the stupid pipe that tripped me before looking around at where I am. I'm still on the roofs and I still don't know where I am. Nice to know nothing has changed. At least I don't see any of those Black Men in the area. I probably shouldn't be sitting out here in the open, the last thing I need is for them to find me just sitting here waiting for them to come and take me back. No, if they are stupid enough to come after me after I unloaded that world of hurt on their friends I want to make it as difficult as possible for them to catch me again.

Moving as gingerly as I can so I don't make my side hurt any worst then it already is I get to my feet and walk over to a stairwell shed that is sitting next to the edge of the building. There is about a two foot gap between the wall of the shed and the knee high ledge running around the roof. Just about the right size for me to sit down and rest for a bit. It's even cast in shadows meaning it'll be harder to see me, maybe even impossible if I don't move around to much. I guess that is an advantage to being dark green. Or am I more of a yellow green? True green? Sea green? How many shades of green are there anyways?

I roll my eyes at myself. Trying to figure out my skin color really is starting to annoy me but at least it gave my mind a new direction of thought. However much I would like this situation to go away I know I can't just ignore it. I'm on the run, hurt, unable to remember anything and about ready to eat a small cow on my own despite the fact I have recently been sick.

Now what? For now I'm safe but what if those Black Men find me again? I'm hurt with at least a broken rib, maybe even more now that I'm thinking about it. Will I be able to out run them? Will I be able to fight them off again if they corner me? How was I able to do all that stuff anyways? I sigh and look out over the city. All I have are questions that just lead to more questions with not an answer in sight. How can I figure out anything without any tangible facts to go on?

This city sure is pretty at night. The way the lights from the streets below seem to rise up between the buildings like a glowing fog. Along the rooftops, shadows rule and seem to dance as the gentle breeze moves about objects setting out. Even the constant din of noise that rises up with the light doesn't seem to effect this twilight. I think that has to do with the cities' nickname of not being able to sleep or something like that. The city of insomnia. I think that it more like two cities coexisting in one. There's the City of Light below and the City of Twilight above.

After a few more moments of staring out over the city, I shake my head clear. That was a nice interlude but I need to focus on the task at hand. The first thing I ought to do is not keep asking myself the same questions over and over again. That's getting me nowhere and only giving me a headache. I need to find a different approach to this problem instead of banging my head against the preverbal brick wall of a thought process. Instead of obsessing over what I don't know I should take a closer look at what I do know.

Okay. First off I know that I was put through some form of experiment or medical procedure that destroyed my memory and my appearance. I have no memories of anything before waking in that cold, metal room. Well, I did have that flashback about me being strapped to that table and the voice talking about silence and invisibility. There was something very familiar about that voice… should I even consider the familiar feeling about the rat?

Duh! Home!

I had completely forgotten I had remembered where Home was. Okay maybe not exactly but I do have a clue to its location. Home is down. I'm not really sure about what exactly down means but at least I have a starting point now.

I had been sitting with my back –or shell- against the shed wall with my legs folded up in front of me in the small space left over. Now I move forward and roll myself up so that I'm kneeling there. I lean over the side of the roof so that I can look down on the ground below. Wow, that's one long drop. I shift backwards slightly so that my center of gravity is defiantly over the roof I'm on but I can still see down onto the busy street below.

If those Black Men were the ones to turn me into a giant turtle then it would make sense that Home would be down. I could have an entire life down there just waiting for me to get back to it. I don't think that's possible until I figure out a way to turn back into a human again. People would freak if they saw me as I am now.

But… that just seems off. I don't think I was a human to begin with. Wouldn't I have freaked out before I had seen my reflection? I had seen my arms, hands and body long before I had seen my reflection and those passing glimpses weren't enough to make me freak. If I had changed in appearance I should've freaked out long before being on that rooftop. It's like my subconscious thought process knew what I looked like.

Wait if that's the case that might also be an explanation for my other 'abilities'. I may have lost my memories but my subconscious thought process is still active. I may not remember how to do that cool side flip strike I used to defeat that one Black Man but my subconscious does. As long as I don't focus on what I'm doing my subconscious should step forward and let me accomplish what I'm trying to do. It may not be one hundred percent correct but at least no I have a reasonable sounding hypothesis about how I can do everything I have been doing.

Why do I sound like a scientist?

"Great, another question," I mumble under my breath. I sigh and lean back the wall again, my shell hitting it with a light thud. I sit still, resting for a few more moments and staring idly out over the city. After awhile I climb to my feet and cautiously leave the relative safety of the shadows. It's high time I went Home.

I move over the rooftops slowly keeping an eye out for any of the Black Men but also looking around to see if anything would spark a familiar feeling. There had to be something in this vast city that would help me gain more of a clue as to where Home was. I just jog around only picking up the pace if I needed the extra speed to make a jump and twisting my head every this way and that as I searched. It wasn't much of a plan but it was the only one I had.

It's been almost an hour of fruitless searching so far. I slow down from my trot to a walk and finally to a complete stop so I can take a short breather. The wind shifts blowing the most enticing smell ever towards me before I can look around for a place to sit in relative safety. Mmmmm… that smells good. I sniff at the air letting my nose lead me over to the edge of the roof I'm on. It seems to be coming from that little corner restaurant down on the opposite side of the stree-

_-"Hey! Let's grab a pizza before we go!" a voice echoes through the stillness of the night shattering it._

_A second voice pipes up sounding much more serious then the first, "We don-"_

_There's a rumble that sounds like it came from a stomach, "Yeah, what my stomach said." The first voice changes in pitch trying to sound like someone else, "It's saying, 'Food. Food.'"_

_A third more accented voice joins in the conversation, "I gotta agree with knucklehead here, fearless. Let's grab some grub."_

"_Yeah, we can tell them to send it to April's," the first voice said. "She said she doesn't mind as long as we pay her back."_

_The second voice sighs but there is a touch of amusement in it when the person says, "What do you thin-"_

I was laying down on my side again, curled into a ball like I was after the last time I had a flashback. All the same symptoms were present too. I was sweating, trembling and clutching at my head as it throbbed in time with my heartbeat. This time the memory had only been voices that I didn't recognize talking to each other. The last statement I knew had been directed at me but other then that I had no idea about these voices. At least now I know that there are people out there somewhere who know me. Hopefully, they are looking for me.

I blink and then realize how close I had come to falling off the edge of the building. My nose… um… beak is maybe an inch from the wall of the knee high ledge going around the roof. I sit up slowly causing my side to remind me again not to fall on it so hard and then lay on it for unknown amounts of time. I look at the wall feeling sick to my stomach and terrified at the same time. I had almost fallen off the roof remembering a stupid conversation!

I scuttle quickly backwards away from the wall as if it's about to bite me. After I feel like I'm a suitable distance away, I stop and just sit there holding my side as my mind whirls in near panic. I nearly died, I'm hurt, I'm hungry, I'm tired, I can't remember anything, and I'm so alone right now. There's got to be a better way for me to remember something else. Anything else. I feel like all I'm doing is running around in an endless circle accomplishing nothing! A feel a drop of wetness land on my arm, that's all I need is for it to start raining.

I small voice suddenly whispers through my head, _"Actually, you're crying."_

Just like that the floodgates opened and I started to bawl my eyes out. The tears just streamed down my face, leaving a slight salty taste in my mouth. At first I try to contain the harsh sobs but the pain in my side becomes unbearable so I just let them go. Now I'm not only crying because of the loneliness and helplessness but I'm also crying over the pain in my side. Stupid broken ribs, it hurts to even breathe now.

I don't know how long I sat there crying but it had to be for awhile. At some point during my tirade I had laid down on my stomach –plastron, whatever, I don't care any more- and judging on how my fist felt had pounded on the roof several times in frustration. That was mature. I had a five year old cry-fest on the roof out in the open for any one to see. Good going, as if my pride hasn't taken enough of a beating by now.

I can't stay here. I need to keep moving so that the Black Men don't find me again. I struggle to my feet, feeling for the first time how tired I am. Maybe I should just sit back down for a bit. It's not like I'm getting very far looking for Home. I look around, not really paying attention to the scenery. I should find some form of shelter to hole up in for awh-

Wait a second! That water tower over there! I focus my eyes on a water tower perched on top of a roof about a mile from me. Yes, I defiantly know that tower. I've been there before many times. It was a land marker for… for… some place important!

It might be how I find my way home!

I start towards the water tower as fast as I can go. This tiny glimmer of hope is all I need to find the energy to get moving again. I half flew over the rooftops not looking at where I was going or keeping an eye out for the Black Men. I only had my sights on that tower and there is no force on earth that is going to stop me from getting there.

I hurtle over the last gap between the roofs and find myself on the roof with the tower. I walk towards it slowly like I'm in a dream taking in every detail about the tower. It looks fairly old but you can see where someone has taken the time to repair it. I walk underneath the supports and look up to the bottom of the tank before walking out on the other side. I'm next to the ladder that leads up to the top of the tank. My hand reaches out and set on a rung as I look up the ladder at the tank above. I step in front of the ladder as if to climb up it before turning around and looking out behind me.

_-Three rooftops back and one to the left.-_

I step away from the tower reluctantly letting go of the rung. I am defiantly onto something here. I follow the voice and head three rooftop away from the tower and then hop over to the one on my left side. On a hunch I walk past a brick chimney and head to the side of the roof looking down on the street below. All the buildings on this street are lined with buildings that have a business on the ground floor and at least one apartment above and I some cases more. Compared to the rest of the city this street seems almost deserted. I glance off to my right and see a fire escape heading down the side of the building. It looks so familiar. "Home is down," I repeat to myself and start down the fire escape.

The window that the fire escape leads to is wide open letting the cool breeze float into the room beyond. I crouch down and peer around the side of the window pane to see what's inside. It takes me a moment for my eyes to adjust from the near gloom of being outside to the brightness that is inside. Just because this place is familiar doesn't mean that I want to rush inside. It might not be my home and I don't want to run into a trap.

When my eyes have adjusted, I feel my jaw drop. I've been here before a lot of times. There was a feeling of safety in the wall of this place and I knew nothing would ever hurt me here. I move around the pain and hop down onto the hardwood floor. The room was devoid of life but I knew someone was here. I sigh. I never felt more safe then this since I can remember.

The room is a combination between the kitchen, dining and living room areas. There is a railing less staircase leading up to a loft area above me. The walls alternate between brick and a creamed colored wallboard paint job that is the same as the couch sitting in the middle of the living room. The couch is set in front of a shelving unit that house a large flat screen television that is on mute and looks like it's broadcasting the eleven o'clock news. The shelves are lined with sports trophies and souvenirs that look like they have come from various corners of the world. I turn around a notice that there is another series of shelves behind the couch that is lined with books. I like books. I pad silently across the floor and pull the first book I grab off the shelf to flip through.

Wait a second. Is this written in another language? I open the book to a random page but no matter which way I turn it I can't make any sense of the writing. '_Tilc wil yhnl hx pedbxw nbbflm pmm wil xpew._' What on earth? What does it mean? I put that book back and pull down another one only to be confronted with the same strange language. This could be a problem.

A noise comes from behind me and I whirl around to find myself eye to eye with a human standing on the other side of the room. We both freeze like children with our hands caught in the cookie jar. The guy is well built as if he lifts weights every day. Actually he looks like he came from the gym. He's wearing a pair of white cross trainers and a pair of blue workout pans with a white stripe running up the outside of his legs. He's wearing a red muscle tank that shows of he well toned upper body. I think his bicep is as big as my neck! Long black hair frames his faces and gives him a roguish look. I bet this guy rides a motorcycle or something, he certainly looks the part. A pair of bright blue eyes stares at me in astonishment. I have a feeling I wasn't the only one gawking.

"Mbccnl! Tilrl ipul rbv ollc? Tl'ul ollc ebbfhcj lvlyrtilyl kby rbv! Prl rbv bfpr? Tipw ipaalc?

Ummm... What? He's speaking gibberish. He was trying to talk to me? Do I know him? He sounds glad to see me.

A female's voice suddenly echoes from the loft, "Npxlr? Tipw pobvw Mbc?"

"Npee wil jvrx, opol. Mbcchl gvxw npdl hn wil thcmbt." What is going on around here? What language are they spe-

_-You mustn't be seen by humans!-_

I gasps as the ancient voice echoes through my head causing me to panic. I jump backwards throwing the book off to the side. I'm was standing close to the wall anyways so I ended up slamming my shell into the bricks and shelf behind me sending several books and knick-knacks crashing to the floor. Hope I didn't break anything important. Man looks shocked at my reaction. Wait… MAN! GAH! He's a human! I bolt for the window, knocking an end table over in my haste.

"Mbcchl! Tphw! Nbbl opnf ilyl!" Man yells after me. I heard the female voice say something else in a questioning tone but I'm already halfway up the fire escape and can't hear her. Not that it matters because I can't understand them. I make it about ten steps onto the roof before falling to my hands and knees. My head was throbbing and I was shivering as if I was in the middle of a snowstorm. I could feel the sweat just running off my body and my muscles were beginning to ache from the shivering. I ignored the pain in my side as I panted for breath.

Why on earth did I walk into an apartment like that? Of course a human shouldn't see me, duh! They would probably lock me in a cage somewhere and study me. I'm a five foot tall bipedal turtle! Who knows how much someone could get if they sold me to a scientist. For all I know that could be how I ended up in that building.

"Mbcchl? Pyl rbv pryhjiw? Tipw'x tybcj, ovmmr?" Man says as a hand lands gently on my shoulder.

He followed me!

I don't even look at him. I have to get out of here! I gather my feet under me and spring away before he can react and tighten his grip. "Mbccl! Nbdl opnf!" I still have no idea what he's saying but it can't be good. He's a human!

I move swiftly over the rooftops but Man just keeps following me. It's not like I'm doing anything more difficult then running like crazy so let's throw something a little harder at him. I head towards a taller building that has a fire escape on this side. I leap upwards, heading up the escape as fast as I can go. On the last rail I just jump upwards easily clearing the edge of the building and landing on the roof. Now where to? I should pick a destination instead of ru-

GAH!

Man lands next to me, completely unfazed by going up the fire escape. He got up here fast which means he went up the same way I did. The only other people that can do that are the Black Men! Crud! He has to be one of them!

His mouth was opened as if he was going to say something and I promptly filled it with my fist. He stumbled backwards looking stunned and turned back towards me just in time for me to kick him in the chest with a side kick. He lands hard on the rooftop. Bet he wishes he had a shell like me.

I don't stick around to see if he is getting back up. I head for the proverbial hills. There is a chance that he has already called his black clad friends and they are on their way to search the area for me. The farther from here I can get the better off I'll be. Maybe after I get a couple of miles away I can hide in a maintenance shed or something. I'm getting tired of running everywhere. Then I can have a few minutes of piece to figure out what to do next.

"Il'x ilpmhcj mbtc dphc xwyllw, Elb!" I glance over my shoulder to see Man still following me. He's persistent, I'll give him that, but I won't just go back to the lab quietly. I would rather die then go back there or I could kill him. It's not easy to kill someone with a staff but I'm sure I know how to do it but for some reason just the thought of killing him or anyone else makes me feel a little queasy. I'd rather not kill but I'm not going back there no matter what. Since killing myself isn't appealing either I guess I'll just have to outrun him.

"Come on then, Man," I mumble to myself as I jump to a lower roof and fall into a roll landing on my feet again. "Catch me if you can."


	3. Chapter 3: On the Run

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Jet lag... so sleepy... Is it even possible to get jet lag on a train? Or is it train lag? I don't know. I'm going to bed._

Chapter Three: On the Run

I scramble over the rooftops in front of me heading for the busier parts of town. I want to avoid anymore humans but there are more obstacles on that side of town. The roofs are more uneven and there are more sheds, pipes, vents, water towers, and even more important shadows. Even if he's a Black Man I should be able to loose him in all that confusion.

I only hope I have the endurance to last that long. I've already been running all over this city and had that small scuffle with the Black Men. My recent memory and then crying my eyes out didn't help either. I feel drained both physically and emotionally but the fear of being seen by a human has given me a small boast of adrenaline. I'm hoping that there is enough adrenaline for me to get away from Man and find a suitable place to hide for awhile. I need some time to sit down to clear my head and just plain rest.

I glance over my shoulder to see if Man is still on my trail. Yeah, there he is. He's keeping up with me but he barely even looks winded. If anything it looks like he's pacing himself. A bad feeling is beginning to build in my gut. He should be able to run alongside me but he's staying farther back away from me. As I take another glace over my shoulder at him I notice Man puts something up against his says something in it. Is that a cell phone or something? Oh no, he's not trying to catch me. He's just keeping tabs on me till his friends find me.

I have to get away from Man now!

I pick up the pace a little more, hurtling over a pipe running along the rooftop before taking a sharp left. I slid across the rooftop slightly before I found the traction I needed to sprint forward again. It was a short distance to pick up enough speed to make the jump but before I could even consider the stupidity of jumping over a four lane highway I was already in the air. I knew as gravity began to pull me down again that I wasn't going to make it to the other side. I had barely even made it halfway across the road but I just calmly tucked my legs up under myself and landed on some sort of wire spanning the gap. Using the cable like it was a trampoline I easily jumped up over the rest of the road. I landed and stumbled forward a bit to catch my balance. A quick look over my shoulder showed that Man was standing on to opposite roof talking into his cell phone.

That was all the incentive I needed to get moving again. I turned and looped back the way we had come. Halfway across the roof I dodged into the shadows using them to make it harder for Man to spot me for the opposite side of the road. After two rooftops I struck out to my right farther away from the road and then doubled back again all the while staying cloaked in the shadows. Hopefully staying hidden in the shadows will allow me to slip away from Man and the other Black Men undetected. I seem to be really good at this sneaky stuff.

Suddenly the air seems to… shift and not in a good way. I stop running and crouch down looking back and forth for something out of place. The shadows no longer seem safe. I turn myself so that my shell is against the wall. I don't want whatever it is to sneak up behind me. No, it's not a something it's someone. Someone is hiding in these shadows with me. A slight movement of to my right makes me look that way in time to see someone step out of the deeper shadows as silently as a wraith.

What… the… shell?

It's another mutant turtle.

Just like me.

Well not an exact mirror copy but we're very similar with the whole mutant turtle features like a shell and green skin. As far as I can tell we have the same skin color anyways. He might be a shade darker but there isn't enough light to get a good look. He's wearing the same 'clothes' that I am except he has this strap that runs diagonally over his plastron. The strap seems to be helping to hold up the pair of swords whose hilts are peeking over both shoulders. He seems slightly bulkier then me and maybe a smidgen taller. He has maybe an inch maximum on me. His eyes seem more determined and he's wearing a blue mask that looks like my purple one. How come he gets a blue mask? I like blue.

"Mbcchl, pyl rbv peyhgiw?" Blue suddenly said. I guess he's trying to talk to me like Man did. "Npxlr xphm wipw rbv tlyl pnwhcj tlhym." I shook my head in confusion. What was this guy trying to say to me? "Npc rbv wlee dl tipw'x tybcj?"

My frustration is mounting. Why do they think I understand them? I don't even know what language they're speaking. Maybe I should tell them that they're speaking nonsense. I stand up keeping the wall to my back. I still don't know if he's on my side. Just because we look the same doesn't mean anything. "Can you please speak English so I know what you're saying?"

His jaw drops and his eyes are shadowed in disbelief. He seems hesitant when he says, "Mbc, mb… rbv lvlc vcmlyxwpcm dl?"

"Don't you get it?" I said massaging my temples. I can feel a headache coming on. "I don't have a clue what you're saying."

Blue opened his mouth again to say something else but the light thump of someone landing nearby caught my attention. I looked off to my left and saw Man standing up. He paused looking between both Blue and I. Blue took a glance at him but his focused turned right back to me. Doesn't he know that Man is a bad guy? Wait. What if they are working together? Is Blue in league with the Black Men? This must just be a ploy to get me to go with them so they can take me back to the lab. "I'm onto you two," I say I feel my body tensing up as adrenaline begins to pound through my veins again. How long can I keep relying on my adrenaline before it runs out? Blue had stopped talking and I noticed that his eyes were traveling over my body before looking back in my eyes. I guess he noticed my body language because I can see him shifting slightly as if he was getting ready for me to run or attack. Guess we're going to find out who's faster and -if he manages to corner me- how well he can fight with those swords. "You're not going to get me that easily."

I bolt to the left, Blue following right on heels, and man letting out a cry of surprise before following as well. Blue is faster then Man. Actually Man is faster then he was before. Guess he really was just following me. The rooftops are flying past at an incredible speed this is the fastest I've run so far. Neither Blue nor Man seem fazed by my speed staying barely a step behind me at all times.

I'm jumping down to a lower rooftop when I catch Blue's voice saying something. I don't think it's directed at me so I guess he's talking to Man. I land and roll back to me feet. I'm barely three steps when I catch a flash of movement off to my right making me look over there to see nothing but shadows. Man and Blue land right behind me so I look back to where I was running before. I know I should pay more attention to little details like that. Both the Black Men and their turtle accomplishes seem to be very good at slipping around unseen but right now I have to get some kind of distance between me and those two. Suddenly something jumps out in front of me. I stop running, slamming on the brakes as my eyes look over this new addition to the chase.

It's another turtle but this one is slightly smaller then me. He's a little shorter then me but he has more muscles then I have especially in his calves. He must do a lot of running and other physically tasking sports I guess. He's probably faster then I am too. Or at least can run longer. In his belt are two sets of… two sets of sticks link together with a short chain. What the heck are those things for? Are they some kind of weapon or something? His mask is orange and his eyes seemed to be filled with laughter, worry and… surprise?

That was when I realized that despite the fact I had tried to stop there was lose gravel or something like that on the rooftop which made the rooftop a very hazardous place to try and stop. I was skidding and kept going right into Orange's chest. I felt his arms come around me as he took a step backwards to try and keep his balance. Before I had a chance to try and fight my way out of his grip something crashed into my back. He stumbled backwards again trying to maintain his balance but the next hit sent Orange, me, Blue and Man chasing to the rooftop in a jumble of arms and legs.

I squirmed and wiggled around trying to get free but the combined weight of the two on my shell and the fact that all of us were thrashing to get free made it impossible to figure out which way was up. At least when Orange was knocked to the ground he lost his grip on me. All three of them seem to be talking at the same time, whether they're trying to figure out how to get up or if Orange still has a grip on me I don't know.

Suddenly one of the green arms move out of my face and someone's knee collides with one of mine and I pop out of the pile. I feel like a bar of soap. I land on all fours next to the jumble of bodies and scramble to get my feet under me. I begin to run like crazy away from them. When I'm barely a handful of steps away I hear a set of footsteps following followed closely by two others. These guys' just don't know when to quit.

I don't bother to look behind me to see how close they are. I'm… not going to be able to keep running like this. I've got to find a place to hide or some other way to get away from them. My eyes track over the rooftops in front of me. There's nothing up ahead that can help me. If anything the obstacles would just slow me down even more. I glance down at the street below and have a sudden idea as I see a large semi rolling along the road. If I can land on that I should be able to put some distance between me and my pursuers even if it's just to give me the time to catch my breath.

"Mbcpwleeb! Mbc'w!" I heard Blue yell as I leap over onto the ledge running around the roof. I guess he must've figured out what I was doing. I launch myself into the air anyways despite the fear I could hear in his voice and the fear that was building inside me. This was a long way down to land on a moving vehicle as it went down the road. I was beginning to realize that this was a very stupid idea.

I made it though, landing almost dead center on the semi's trailer. My victory was short lived when I lost my balance trying to stick my landing and ended up rolling backwards. Over and over I go. What if I run out of trailer roof before I could stop myself? I doubt I'll have to worry about any one chasing after me when I'm little more then a splatter on the pavement. My hand suddenly catches something I'm able to stop my backward tumble. I wonder how close I am to the edge? As if to answer my question I feel my legs fall over into space. Wow, talk about lucky.

I'm barely able to pull myself back up onto the trailer. I sit there panting hard and making my side ache as I scan the rooftops. I don't see them and the truck is moving at pretty good clip. Did I finally manage to get away? I look up ahead when I feel the semi slowing down. Looks like its getting ready to make that turn up ahead. There's an alley right before it. As the semi slowly down I jump into the shadows of the alley. I fall right to my knees and clutch at my side. The benefit of adrenaline means I don't feel the broken ribs but it just means the pain comes back tenfold when the adrenaline wears off. Joy.

I get up and head deeper into the alley. On the other end of the alley I can see a construction site. That can offer more then enough hiding spots for me at least until the sun comes up. I don't think that the workers would take too kindly if they caught me snoozing behind some girders. First I need to get my side to stop hurting so much and catch my breath. I crouch down next to a dumpster ignoring the smell. As I rest I keep an eye out in case Blue or Man or Orange saw me duck in here. Hey there's a manhole cover over there. When did they start putting manholes in the middle of alleys?

There's something oddly familiar about this. Why would a manhole be important to me? I feel safe now that I've seen it a lot like when I had first walked into that apartment. Is this another trap? Or could Home be underneath a manhole cover? Why would I live in the sewers? That's so unhygienic. Now that I think of it I doubt many people would be down there. It would be the perfect place for a giant mutant like me to live in peace without having to worry about people walking in to catch me.

Before I can move toward the manhole cover to see what was underneath it someone jumps down the fire escape and lands in front of my on the other side of the alley. Great, it's another giant turtle. This one is about my height and is much broader in the shoulders. I mean he's massive. I'd say this turtle is Man's lifting buddy, they both seem to have equal amounts of muscle mass. Actually I think this turtle is just a little more built then him but only just. In his belt are these wicked looking knife thingies. They look like mini tridents except the middle prong is much longer then the other two. His eyes seem angry but not at me which is weird. I wonder if this turtle is mad at everything around him. His mask is a deep red, almost but not quite the color of blood. It's kind of creepy.

He walks over towards me slowly and I stand keeping my back against the wall. Despite his appearance, I'm not intimidated by him. He feels almost… safe. Just like the apartment and with the manhole cover a second ago I feel totally at ease around him. He won't hurt me. He comes to stand in front of me and brings a hand up to gently grip my shoulder. I sigh and let my eyes close. I'm finally safe.

I feel Red suddenly jerk and I open my eyes to see him looking up at the rooftops. I follow his line of sight and feel my breath catch in my throat. Black Men! They're looking down at the two of us in the alleyway and there are a lot of them. I can't fight them all off and I don't think Red would be able to either. Even if we worked together we won't be able to do it. The Black Men want me not Red. I glance at the construction site. Maybe if I can run over there they'll follow me and leave Red alone. I don't know why but I don't want Red to be hurt because of me. But what if Red called them in as back up? The other turtles were working with the Black Men maybe he is too. I don't want to believe that but I can't take any chances. If Red really is in league with the Black Men then I've got to get out of here.

I take one last look at both Red and the Black Men to see if either of them was paying attention to me. Neither party is so I gathered up my courage and what little strength I had left. I took off before any of them could realize what I was doing. I felt Red's grip tighten but it was a fraction of a second to late to stop me. "Xiee, Mbcchl!" I heard Red yell after me and then the sound of his heavy foot falls following me. I glance up at the rooftop to see that the Black Men were also following me. I grit my teeth and look back towards the construction site. There's a high wooden fence surrounding it with barbed wire on the top to keep people out. I know I can jump over it if I improvise. I just hope there is a place for me to hide in there.

I sprint across the empty street, its amazing how one street can have traffic when the street next to it is eerily deserted. I pull my staff free and use it like a pole vault to leap over the high fence. I almost don't make the jump. I can feel the wire catching at my shell and snagging at the tips of my mask. I keep a grip on my staff pulling the stick up and over the fence with me. I shudder to think of what would happen if I was cornered without it. I land hard, falling backwards onto my shell as I skid in the dirt. I think I have a really poor sense of balance. I always seem to be falling.

If I thought I was hurt before then I was sorely mistaken. I hurt now. My side is screaming. I really have to stop falling on it. Now I have a series of scrapes from where the gravel tore up my skins. They sting like I was too close to a fire but not close enough to burn myself. My left ankle is also complaining at me. It feels kind of… bloated. I don't think it's sprained. I can still stand and walk around fine even if I have a slight limp in my step now. I think I may have just twisted it.

I'm reaching down to pick up my staff when a loud 'thunk' catches my attention. What's that silvery point coming through the fence? I don't remember seeing that there before. There's another 'thunk' and another silvery point came through the fence about a foot above the first one. I hear a grunt and the first point is gone, reappearing about a foot above the other one. Wait a second. Those look like the tips on Red's forks. He's scaling the fence!

I turn and begin to run away from the fence. Ow! Okay, how about walking briskly away from the fence. My ankle might be worst off then I thought it was. Even though it would be easier, I ignore the elevator. It would be too easy to spot and it's a small space that I can easily get cornered in. I'll take the stairs. As I'm going up the first set Red's head comes over the fence. As I watch he takes one of his tridents and twists it into the barbed wire and tears the wire from the top of the fence. Wow. He then climbs over the fence and lands on the ground much more gracefully then I had. I stop to watch him but seeing him run towards the steps made me start scaling them again taking two steps at a time despite how much it made my ankle hurt.

I keep going up the stairs. Just because I can't hear Red doesn't mean he's not following me any more. All these guys are able to walk around without making any noise. If I couldn't do it too I would freak about it. It's creepy.

A sudden move off to my left caught my attention. I turn to look to see what it was only to have a pair of feet smash into my side, knocking me away from the stairs and out onto the floor of the level I'm on. At least he kicked me in the left side. I hit the ground and I scream. Okay, that was the right side. Shell! That hurt! I scramble to my feet only to receive a kick in the side. Would they leave my right side alone?! It hurts enough as it is. I twist with the kick only to receive a snap kick to the jaw. Ooohhhh… look at the pretty… stars…

I lose my balance and fall onto my shell. I sit up slowly, shaking my head back and forth trying to realign the cosmos inside my head. I lean back against the crates I landed next to and look at the semi circle of Black Men around me. Shell. They cornered me. At least I'll go down fighting… without my staff. I can see the pole laying on the floor a good ten feet away behind a couple of the Black Men. I stand slowly and wobble back and forth for a second before I catch myself. I'm a force to be reckoned with even without my stick and the Black Men seem to know it. A few take a step back when I bring my hands up in… there is a name for this pose but I don't know what it is. Both my hands are up and I twist myself around slightly so that one foot is in front of the other and most of my weight is resting back on my right foot. I can easily switch my weight to either foot and I curl my fingers slightly putting the left one out towards the Black Men while my right stays back near my face. Okay guys', bring it on.

The Black Men look between each other as if they were agreeing on something. One of the Black Men in front of me pulled out this little pole that looked like mine except it was only a foot long. It also looks like its hollow. As I watch he pulls out a little… thing… it's hard to see it… it's so small. He drops it into the one end of the pipe and then holds it up where his mouth is. Shell! Darts! I can't stop those! I hear a 'phomf' as the dart is launched at me.

A blur of green is suddenly in front of me and the dart is knocked to the side by a swirl of silver and brownish red. Red is standing between me and the Black Men. He catches his fork which had been spinning around his fingers so that his fingers went through between the points. He's holding it up as the Black Men begin to draw their swords. A sudden push on my chest pushes me farther away from Red and the Black Men as well as knocks me off my balance. Again. This is getting tiring. Instead of falling a pair of arms grab me around the waist and pull me back gently. Blue and Man, who is now wearing a white face mask thing, land on either side of Red with swords and a… hockey stick and baseball bat drawn? What odd weapons. The arms around me let go as Orange steps in front of me and pushes me back against the crates. He has his chained sticks out clutched in his hands.

The Black Men suddenly move, launching themselves at the turtles and Man brandishing their swords. Man, Red and Blue leap forward to engage them but Orange stays back with me. He's holding his sticks and I can feel him tensing but he doesn't join in the fight which is getting nasty. I thought I was brutal when I took those five down near the Lab but what I did to them seems mild compared to what these guys are doing to them. Blue is swinging those swords around leaving Black men doubled over and clutching at various body parts. I don't see any blood but they seem to be hurting something fierce. Red is throwing punches left and right with a few kicks thrown in for good measures. As I watch he punches one Black Man with a vicious sucker punch that sends the Black Man flying over the head of his friend standing behind him. I think Red used the butt of his fork thing to do that. Ow. Man is a whirl of sticks and bats knocking groups of Black Men all over the floor with a single swing. Every now and then a kick or punch is thrown into the fray but most of his damage seems to be coming from a combination of the hockey stick swing and the baseball bat bash.

Three Black Men suddenly vault over Red and charge Orange and me. Orange takes a quick glance at me, "Mbc'w tbyyr, Mbc. Xwpr ilyl." He then launches himself forward letting go of one of the two sticks in each hands so that they hung by the chain. He suddenly began twisting his wrist which whipped the sticks around so that they were little more then blurs. He brought the left stick up and knocked aside the lead Black Man's sword following it with the right one that caught him across the jaw. There was a loud crack that I'm sure meant the Black Man's jaw was just broken. Orange kept up the spin catching the Black Man off to the first one's right side in the skull with another crack. I didn't realize his foot had been coming up until the last Black Man doubled over in pain.

Wait, hold on a second. Slow down. Time out. Rewind the tape. Whatever it takes for me to figure out what is going on. Why are they fighting each other if they're on the same side? Shouldn't they be working together to catch me? Why are the turtles and Man protecting me from them? I wish someone could tell me what is going on. This is so confusing. I rub at my temples. I think I have another headache coming on.

Something crashes into he crates next to me causing me to jump. What the shell was that? I look over and see Man partially leaning against the crates and rubbing at his sore head. Something slides into the side of my foot. It's Man's hockey stick. One of the Black Men must have kicked him pretty hard I guess. I glance back towards where the Black Men are and do a double take when I see one of the charging Man. The Black Man's blade is lowered and pointing at about the center of the Man's chest. It looks like he is going to try and impale Man to the crates he's leaning against.

He can't do that! I tuck my toes underneath the hockey stick and flip it up into my hands. It's shaped differently then my stick but there is not enough of a deference between the two to effect my fighting. I twirl it once in my hand before swing out with it and catching the Black Man in the chest. I throw him back away from Man ad step between the two of them. The Black Man seems confused for a moment because he just stands there staring at me rubbing at his sore chest. Yes, I'm you're opponent now. Deal with it. I twirl the stick again and lunge at him. He brings his sword up in time to stop my strike from taking off his head but he neglected to pay attention to my feet. I kick him in the stomach, doubling him over, and the smash the stick into the back of his head with just enough to knock him out. I really didn't want to kill this guy.

I didn't get much of a chance to check on Man to see if he was okay after that. I don't know why I had even bothered to help him. It was just natural, like it was the right thing to do. After I had knocked aside the first Black Man two more seemed to take his place. I block both their swords with the hockey stick and then spin around kicking both of them with the round house kick. They flew off to the side and I stumbled slightly to catch my balance. My side is hurting again and I notice for the first time that I am wheezing. My muscles are stiff and are a little sluggish in responding. I think my adrenaline is finally running out. Another Black Man comes at me. I grip the hockey stick a little tighter and get ready to-

OW!

I step away from the sudden pain in my arm before reaching towards the ache. Please let this not be what I think is. My heart sinks as I feel the small cylinder caught in my arm. Shell! I pull the dart out quickly and toss it away as if it could still hurt me. Maybe I was able to pull it out of my arm before it could inject whatever into my blood stream? Actually… I'm feeling… kind of dizzy. I stumble slightly and shake my head trying to dissipate the raising fog in my mind. I lose my grip on the hockey stick as I fall to one knee. "MBC!" someone yells. What does that mean anyways? A hand grabs one of my wrists from the side of my head and hauls me up to my feet. I barely get a look at the Black Man holding me up before he bends over and takes me up on his shoulder. No! I can't let him take me! I try to struggle but it's too much of an effort to movearound. I'm able to moan and that's about it as the Black Man turns around, running away from where I had been. At least the sedative or whatever it is that's knocking me out is taking the pain away from my side.

"Mbc'w lulc wihnf pobvw hw!" the Black Man suddenly jerks and I hear him gasp. I'm falling. If I had the energy to be worried I would be. This is going to hurt. Everything seems to be happening to me from a great distance like I'm watching a movie instead of living it. A hand grabs my shoulder and slows my fall. I hit the floor hard but the hand seems to have been more focused on not letting my head pound off the floor more then anything. I lightly placed down on my plastron as the sounds of the fight begin to grow dim in my ears. Come on… not now… I've got to stay awake! My eyes slipped close at some point and I struggle to open them again. Everything is slipping away and I'm so tired… No! Stay awake!

Someone rolls me over and cradles my head. A pair of fingers press to the side my throat. I can barely feel them but I know they're there. Who is that? I can hear the mummer of voices around me but they sound more like they're coming over a static filled radio station. I use the last of my strength to force my eyes open, I'm going to be unconscious soon enough might as well see who has me. Shell, everything is too blurry to see anything well enough to tell what is what. There are shadows leaning over me but a single trace of color catches my eye before everything fades out and I pass out.

"Blue?"


	4. Chapter 4: Where Am I?

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Congrads to both Guardian Angel of Haven City and Paige34 who have figured out the code for what everyone is actually saying to Don. Originally I was going to have Don hearing and saying things in Latin but my Latin is a little rusty and I think April would have been able to understand him which is something I don't want to happen (at least for a while yet)._

_And could someone poke Pretender Fanatic and make sure she's still alive? Sorry about the wait, hopefully the next chapter will be up a little faster then this one, but I'm not making any promises._

Chapter Four: Where Am I?

W-W-Where…?

Wh-What… happened?

This… This is familiar…

Way to… familiar…

D-Did the Black Man catch me again? It feels like it. I feel like when I woke up back in that steel room. There are several differences between this time and last time though. I may feel sick as a dog again but I'm not in that steel room. I'm laying on something soft that seems to curl around behind my shell. It feels like I'm laying on my side on a couch. At least it's not on my right side. My head is being cradled by a pillow and something cool is covering my forehead. Mmmmm… It feels nice… Am I running a fever or something? A blanket is lightly tucked in around me and is helping to reduce the chills unlike last time when I was laying on the steel floor.

Someone has also given me medical attention which is a first, especially when I last woke up. Like the cold compress on my forehead there also feels like there is something cold around my ankle. Guess I really did twist it or something. I hope it's only twisted. Something also is wrapped around my stomach and chest binding it tight. It's just tight enough that it's making it a little difficult to breathe. Yeah, I'm definitely not in that room anymore or with the Black Men.

So then where am I?

Okay, last thing I remember was saying a name. What was it, again? I know it began with a 'B'... Bill? No. Bob? Nope. Blue? Yeah, I said 'Blue'. Why would I be thinking about a color? No wait… I vaguely remember someone leaning over me, holding my head and taking my pulse. Who was that? He looked weird too. He seemed to be green and was wearing nothing? No, he had a mask on and it was blue… Blue! Blue was next to me! So the turtles and Man have me?

What do they want with me?

Someone suddenly takes something off my forehead and it's all I can do to remain still. I don't want them to know that I'm awake yet. Maybe I can figure out what is going on here if I just stay still. "Mbcpwleeb, dr xbc, mb rbv ilpy dl?" whoever is near me sounds old and nothing like Blue, Red, Orange or Man. The voice doesn't even sound like that woman that had been in the apartment with Man. A hand gently rests on my forehead and it's so familiar that my eyes just pop open on their own.

Oh… My… God…

"Mbcpwleeb? Paxhe, Mbcpwleeb hx ptpfl. Ibt mb rbv klle dr xbc?"

That's a… That's a…

THAT'S A GIANT RAT!!

I panic, completely terrified by the Rat crouched in front of me. I openly scream at the furry face which is a good foot away from me and way to close for comfort. The Rat jerks its head backwards and its ears press against its skull. Shell, now I've really made it mad! I scramble off the couch sending the stuff that had been on me flying to the floor. I roll up and over he back of the sofa putting the large piece of furniture between me and the Rat. Ow. My ankle is beginning to hurt and my side is not too thrilled about me screaming either. I slowly begin to back away from the couch, watching the Rat intently as it stares back at me. Is it just me or does it look sad?

"Mbcchl?" my eyes track over to the sound that's coming from the side of the room. Blue is standing next to a large table that's covered with books and papers. He is watching me with a critical eye and a trace of helplessness in his eyes. He really needs to loosen up a little every now and then. He wasn't the one who spoke so my eyes travel to Man who is sitting backwards in a chair on the far side of the table from me. He's not wearing that white mask like he was last night and his eyes are a confliction of worry and rage. What did I do to make him mad? No, he's not mad at me, he's mad at someone else. I wonder if he and Red hang out a lot.

Movement off to Man's left makes me look over to… um… wow… she's pretty. No, not pretty. She gorgeous. She has short chopped red hair that almost touches her shoulders with a small piece slightly shorter then the others that drapes down over her face. She's wearing a purple tank top and a pair of blue jeans. She's so… just… um… Whoa… I really can't think of how to describe her and still do her justice. I think it's safe to say that I'm definitely a teenage male with some very strong testosterone issues.

"Mb rbv fcbt tib h pd, Mbc?" her voice is laced with hope and worry that I blink and shake my head to try and bring myself back to the task at hand. I'm somewhere with people, mutant turtles, and a giant rat that obviously want something from me but I don't know what that something is yet. Lady almost looks like she's about to cry but she takes a deep breath that seems to banish the tears and give her some strength. She looks over me with a critical eye. Is she a doctor or something? I look away from her and to where ever I am as she says, "Mlkhchwler pmclxhp."

"Wbem rbv," I hear Man say but I try not to pay attention to the conversation any more. Listening to them talk is like stabbing myself in the head repeatedly with a knife. I have enough of a headache going since I woke up and the strange language that they are speaking isn't making it any better. I want an aspirin and to sleep for the next thirty six hours so it can go away.

The padding of feet behind me cause me whirl around to face Orange. I hadn't realized there was more to the room I was in behind me. Well actually it look like a small alcove where a kitchen and large table were. Orange pauses when he sees how tense I am. I stare into his eyes only to see that same combination of laughter and worry. He also looks a little relieved as he stands there holding a tall glass of water. When was the last time I drank anything? He then gives me a huge smile that seems overly comical on his face holding out the glass of water for me to take. I wonder if there's a drug in it but it's hard to hide any form of drug in a clear liquid. I take the glass with a shy smile and take a sip. There's no funny after taste so I know it isn't drugged. It's hard not to gulp it down right there.

I hadn't realized Lady had said anything until Orange spoke up and said, "Jbwwnip, Payhe." Orange looks at me and smiles again. I guess he does that a lot. He points to me, flaps his hand as if he's grabbing at something that's not there, then points over to Lady, then to where his ears should be and finally he points back to me with an expectant look on his face. Um… Okay… obviously Orange is attempting to communicate by using a combination of charades and sign language. From what I can tell, Lady wants something from me. Whatever it is has something to do with a flapping hand. Does she want me to wave to her? Why does she want me to do that? Orange has repeated the strange series of moves and I sigh in exasperation. There has to be some other way to communicate that isn't half as frustrating.

I take a resigned gulp of water and take the few steps needed to set the half full glass on the table. I turn back to Orange and kind of roll my hand around and give him an expectant look. Hopefully he'll get the message and continue. He does -or he didn't notice my hand- and went through the motions again. I still don't understand what the flapping hand is all about. I snap my fingers to get his attention. He stops in mid flapping hand motion and blinks. Taking the moment I point to my hand which I'm flapping like his was a second ago trying to look confused while I did this. He takes in what I'm doing and thinks for a moment before bring his hand up to his mouth. "Wpef, Mbc. Payhe tpcwx wb ilpy rbv wpef." He moves his hand like something is spraying out of his mouth as he speaks. Lady wants me to spray food? Gross! Guess she not that much of a Lady after all.

Orange watches me unhappily. Sorry Orange but even if all the women in the world asked me to do that I would refuse. He looks towards the odd group near the table. "Pcr hmlpx? H'd balc wb xvjjlxwubc." Wait. Instead of a solid, tangible object flying out of his mouth, Orange could very well have meant something else. Like air or words. Lady doesn't want me to spit out food. She wants me to say something. Maybe she knows what I'm saying!

I look across the room at her. She seems engrossed by whatever Blue is saying. "Do you know what I'm saying?" the minute my voice rang out, the conversation ceased and everyone in the room looked at me with wide disbelieving eyes. Looking around at the shocked faces I add, "Judging from your expression that's not going to work." I sigh and rub at my temples. Shell, what's with all these headaches!?

"Dy xbc…" the Rat sighs and sits down in a recliner shaking his head. He's obviously upset about something and whatever that something is has to do with me. Why do I feel like I've failed him somehow?

"Bfpr, xb il'x cbw xalpfhcj hc pcbwily eacjvpjl," Lady said looking back down at one of the books on the table. She flipped to another part of the book and began looking over it. Hmm… I wonder if there is a book somewhere on that table that I can read. If I can write in a way that they can understand then I won't have to have a headache every time Orange-

"Xilee!" I jump at the sudden shout and spin myself around and look up to see Red standing on the opposite side of a railing on the second floor. He looks pissed. "Tl'yl tpxwhcj whdl! Elw'x gvxw jb khcm wil jvr tib mhm wihx pcm dpfl ihd wlee vx ibt wb khs Mbc!" Why is he pointing at me? Did I do something wrong?

"Ypai-" Blue began but Red shoots him an angry glare and cuts him off.

"Elb! Lulc rvb pgyll thwt dl wipw tl xibuem bl bvw wilrl khcmhcj bvw tib mhm wihx! Pcm mbc'w rbv mpyl mlcr hw byb, blnpvxl H fcbt rbv'm bl erhcj."

Blue scowls back up at Red, "H tpcw wb jb pkwly wil Kbbw wbb Ypai, ovw H tbvem ypwily jb pkwly wild fbtchcj wipw Mbc hx jbhcj wb ol peyhjiw."

Red suddenly lands next to Orange and I. Did he just jump down off the balcony? That's almost a ten foot drop and he didn't even roll to lessen the impact. He must have bones of steel or something. As he marches towards Blue pointing a finger at him I notice he doesn't even look effected by the fall. Yup, definitely bones of steel. "Rbv fcbt il'x jbhcj wb bl peyhjiw! Ebbf," now he's pointing at me again. Why are they so upset? "Il'x xwpcmhcj, wihcfhcj pcm wyrhcj wb wpef wb vx. Il'x jbhcj wb ol khcl. Cbt elw'x jb opxi xbdl Kbbw pcm jlw xbdl pcxtlyx!"

"Ypa-" Blue tries again to talk to Red only for him to cut him off again.

"Hk rbv ypwily xwpr ilyl pcm aepr cvyxl dphm, ol dr jvlxw. H'd jbhcj wb jlw pcxtlyx." Red turns as if to leave only to have Blue grab his arm and point at me.

"Hx il pnwhcj khcm wb rbv?! Il mbxlc'w lulc ylnbjchql Xaecwly! Ibt npc rbv xpr il'x khcl hk il npc'w lulc wpef yhijw?!" So now Blue's mad at me too? Why are they mad at me? Shell, listening to their gibberish is giving me one bad headache. I think I should start calling it a migraine from now on. I wonder if I can tell them to quiet it down just a little? Maybe I can get Orange to make the-

That's it!

They're not mad at me. They're mad that they can't understand me. I guess having six people… erm… mutants and people who can't figure out what I'm saying is getting on everyone's nerves. It's like the frustration I'm feeling but magnified by six. Poor guys. I wish I could help them but I have a feeling I would just add to the problem. I look back over at the argument to see what's happened while I was off in my own little world putting together two and two. Uh oh… If I didn't know any better I would say that Red is getting ready to haul back and hit Blue. I should stop them before they get into a fight. As I begin to move forward –ignoring Orange who said "Mbc-"- I can't help but wonder why I would know about Red getting ready to punch Blue. Just how well do I know these turtles?

I'm across the room and between the two in a flash. I put my hands on their chests and push them away from each other. I think they fell back more in surprise then anything. I really didn't push them that hard. I turn my head one way and look Red in the eyes before turning to look at Blue's. "You two shouldn't be fighting over such a minor detail. So we can't understand each other, big deal. We can figure something out if we all just stay calm, not hit each other," I frown at Red as I say this and he looks slightly surprised and a little bit guilty. "Or instigate fights with each other," I turn my attention to Blue who looks just flat out confused. "Until we can come up with something else, Orange's charades work well enough for me to get the general idea of what's going on," I jabbed my finger over my shoulder at where Orange was as I said that last sentence. Oh, wait a second. They can't understand what I just said. Terrific. "And no one has a clue of what I just said," I mutter and rub at my temples again. Shell, can't this headache just go away? I walk away from the stunned pair heading for the couch. "Excuse me," I say to the Rat as I walk past and flop down on the couch. I cross my legs and glance at the Rat again. I hope he won't attack me or something. Hey, he's wearing a robe and there's a walking stick next to him!

Guess I'm not as crazy as I thought I was.

"Mblx pcrbcl ipul p nevl bk tipw il gvxw xphm?" Red's voice breaks the silence that had hung over the room after my little outburst.

"I wihcf il wbem obwi rbv pcm Elb bkk," Man's voice is a cross between nonchalant and humor. Great now they're mocking me.

"I heard that," I say loud enough for Man to hear. Can't these guys just give me a moment of peace? I feel a tap on my shoulder and guess that silence is a luxury that they're not going to give me. I sigh and look up to see Orange standing next to me looking sympathetic. He rubs at his temples like I have been and winces as if it hurts. He then acts like he's unscrewing a bottle and dumping the contents in his hand. He taps his hand twice and then looks at me expectantly. Yes, aspirin! I could use something for this headache. I reach out and take his hand, tapping it four times instead of twice, the more the better. I then nod my head yes and add a 'thanks' as well even though I know he doesn't understand me. Orange snaps his fingers and gives me double thumbs up. I guess he understands me. I give him a weak smile and give him a thumbs up back. He beams -it's like someone turned on a spotlight or something- and bounces off to get me some much appreciated medicine.

Lady's voice stops him, "Tphw p xlnbcm, Djflr. H tpcw wb wpfl p ebbf pw ihd khyxw." She walks across the room and comes to a stop in front of me. She's even prettier up close. She sits on the coffee table across from me and gently takes me wrist looking at her watch while she times my heartbeat. I know it's a little more accelerated then normal and I hope I'm not blushing. She was living with Man and since they don't look anything alike it's a good bet that they are… together in some way. The last thing I need is for Man to think that I'm after his girl. I know who would win that fight and it wouldn't be me.

Lady is done taking my pulse and moves on to cup my cheek. I can tell by her smile and the fact that my face feels like its on fire that I'm blushing. Shell. "Jvlxx Mbc wihcfx rbv'yl nvwl by xbdlwihcj, Payhe," Red says with humor lacing his voice.

"Il'x jbw jbbm wpxwl," at least Man doesn't sound mad but I don't think I'm going to stay in the same room alone with him for awhile. A very long while. Lady is smiling gently and I feel like I'm melting into a pile of goop. To bad I'm not a human and she's already taken. She has a pen light in her hand and I let her shine it into my eyes, ignoring my natural instinct to close my eyes. After she turns the light off and let my cheek go, I sit there and rub at my eyes. Heh, I guess it could be said I was blinded by her beauty. She waited until I was done rubbing stars from my eyes before taking both wrists and turning them over to look at my arms. She narrows her eyes in concentration and gently push at the skin at the inside of my elbow.

Ow! I jerk back from her. That hurt! There's a tender spot on the inside of my elbow. She reaches over and presses in the same spot on my other arm. Again I jerk away and I give her a short lived dirty look. Does she know how much that hurt? "Il ipx vcnily dpyfx hc obwi pydx. Hw ebbfx ehfl il tpx ibbflm va wb pc HU hc obwi pydx," she says now just looking at the inside of my arms. Why is she so fascinated in them? Hey, needle marks. It looks like I had just donated blood from both arms and recently too. I doubt that's what had happened. I think back the memory I had in the lab shortly after I had first woke up about the man injecting something into the base of my neck. I pull a hand free from Lady and grab the side of my neck. What was in that needle anyways? Is that the reason I'm so confused and have amnesia?

Lady's hand gently pulls mine away and she sifts closer to the edge of the coffee table to take a closer look at my neck. If she moves any closer to me she's going to be sitting in my lap and I doubt Man would appreciate that. "Il pexb ipx xlulype cllmel dpyfx hc ihx clnf," she says tipping m head to one side and then the other. Are there more needle marks on the other side of my neck too? How many times did the Black Men stab me with a needle anyways? "H'd jbhcj wb jlw p oebbm xpdael xb H npc hxbepwl tipw'x hc ihx oebbm xwylpd. Il'x ollc myvjjlm pcm wipw hx aybopoer wil npvxl wb wihx tibel dlxx." She gets up and moves away from me heading towards the big table covered with books. I really wish we could talk so I could find out what she found and what she's going for. I feel like we should be working together on this problem but that's probably just my hormones talking. I sigh. I really need to stop thinking about her like that. With my luck Man is a telepath who is going to read my mind and strangle me for think of his girlfriend like that. Yeah, that would be my luck.

There's a snap of fingers and I look over to see Orange sitting down next to me on the couch. He acts like he's injecting something into his arm, points at me and looks confused. What? He must have realized I was confused because he points at his fake 'needle' and looks confused at it before looking expectantly at me. Oh, he wants to know if I know what was injected into me. I shake me head no, "Sorry, Orange. I have no clue what they did to me. It just hurt." I reach up and put my hand on my neck where I remember being injected before. It had felt like that man had injected liquid fire into my veins. Burning up into my brain where it seemed to smolder for a long while before gradual going away. I wonder why I didn't remember that back when I was in the lab.

Is there a chance I'll remember everything eventually? If whatever they injected me with is what's causing my… disability and memory loss then there is a high chance that I'll get everything back. My body will naturally clean whatever the drug is out of my system with time and all drugs have half-lives. All I have to do is wait and the drug will either break down or it will be purged from my system. But what if there are no drugs in my system? Maybe I had just hit my head really hard or something and the Black Men where actually doctors in some kind of mutant hospital? No, that's wrong. The Black Men weren't trying to help me. I know that. Some how I know that.

What if what they did to me is permanent? Now that's a nasty thought. I sure I can relearn my memories if I have a dairy or journal or something but this whole language barrier is going to get to be a real hassle. It's already a big enough problem on its own. Orange and I might eventually be able to make an entire alphabet of hand signs and charades to talk to each other but that would take forever. Trying to learn their language would be and even bigger hassle. I think I know some words from other cultures but they don't sound anything alike. They're speaking gibberish! How on earth am I going to be able to earn gibberish? Lady is coming back over. What's she hol-

Oh… Shell…


	5. Chapter 5: Get Away from Me!

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_I felt bad for Simone Robinson so I finished this chapter up and posted it early. Hopefully you'll get a chance to read this before you're banned from the computer till next weekend, Simone._

_And April's line was supposed to be in code, guess I over looked it when I was swapping out sentences. I'll fix it. Eventually..._

Chapter Four: Get Away from Me!

Okay… come down… don't let them know you're on to them. I force myself to take a calming breath making it sound like I was sighing again. I rub a hand across my forehead using it to hide the fact I was looking for the way out. This place is no longer safe. I can't believe I let myself blindly trust them like I did. All they did was give me medical attention and I let all my defenses down as if I had know them my whole life. Good job, me. Good job. Now about getting out of here…

I don't see any doors in my line of sight. I don't dare turn around and look over my shoulder so I try and recall what I can of the rest of the room when I was standing up. Right now I'm in a living room like area sitting on the couch ad off to my left is where the big table was where Lady was talking to and listening to the others. When I had spun around to face Orange for the first time, there was a kitchen and dinning room behind him. I don't remember seeing any kind of doors in those two areas that could possibly lead outside so that leaves the other side of the room and the balcony where Red hopped down from as the only other options. Hopefully there is a way out somewhere.

Movement off to my right allows me a quick glimpse of the other side of the room when I look to see Red moving toward the other side of the battered recliner that Rat is sitting in. Rat hasn't said or done anything but watch me since he sat down I the recliner. It's really creepy. I wonder if I have something on my face? Before I turn back to keep an eye on Lady as she approaches I lo- What the shell? Why on earth is there a half pipe sitting over there? And arcade games? What is this place some kind of after school program for mutants? Or do these guys just like the idea of having a random items set up through out their home?

The couch cushions shift slightly as Orange moves his legs enough so Lady can slip by. Shell! I look up at her and my eyes instantly focus on the thing in her hand. I haven't even figured out how to get out of here yet and she's already in front of me with that thing. Crud! Now what?! I have to get out of here before she sticks me wit-

_-"Let me go!" my voice echoes eerily in the mostly empty room. I struggle as best as I can, straining against the straps that are around my wrists, ankles, and over my thighs, stomach and chest. Now matter which way I twist or thrash I'm not getting free anytime soon. The straps are so tight that my hands and feet are beginning to tingle, letting me know who starved from blood they are. I have to get out of here and I pull against the straps with all my strength even though I know it will do no good._

"_Take it easy, turtle. This will all be over soon enough." I look off to my side to see a man in a surgical gown standing with his back to me as he did something on the table before him. I growl wordlessly at him and I continue to struggle a little harder then I had been before just because of what he said. I hear him sigh but ignore it. If I could just get my hand free..._

_I catch movement off to my other side and I can just barely make out a form of a man standing in the shadows watching me as if I was the latest blockbuster hit in the movie theater. My stomach lurches at that thought. What are they planning to do with me? If they want answers then they have come to the wrong turtle. No matter what they do to me I'll never tell them anything. I'll die before then._

_The doctor has turned around and is approaching me with a needle in his hand. I don't even want to think of what could be in that. He pushes down on my arm and pulls the skin taut despite my struggles. "Now just take it easy. The last thing I need is for the needle to break off in your arm." He presses the needle against my skin and I can just feel his eyes bore through my skin to find the best vein possible to deliver the needle's contents into my bloodstream._

_I can't just let him get away with this! A phrase goes through my head in a roguish, mischievous tone, "Last great act of defiance." A picture on a tee shirt with that as a caption shows a cartoon drawn mouse flipping off an eagle that is about to take it back to its nest for lunch. I'm really in no position to give the doctor the finger and I only have three fingers so how is that going to work? Probably not as effective as when a human does it. With a dark grin I take a page from Casey's book. Wadding all my saliva up in a ball in my mouth I send it air mailed to my host._

"_GAAHHH," the doctor said as he let go of me and began to wipe the loogie from his face. That was so disgusting but at least it worked. The doctor looks back at me and I can practically feel my head begin to smoke. I guess I made him mad or something. I give him an innocent smile and that seems to make his face turn cherry red with rage. "Why you little…" he growls stomping towards me and pulling a fist back. I know that this is going to hurt but I keep the innocent smile on my face as I mentally say, 'Bring it punk.'_

"_Doctor Saka," the shadowed warrior steps out as he calls to his companion to stop. "Remember our orders. We are not to harm the creature. It's to valuable to us enacted and undamaged. Leave it be."_

"_How am I suppose to tranquilize it if it keeps spitting me in my face?" the doctor gestures towards me while he says this. It all I can do to not tell him to put on a mask and a pair of goggles. Then I would have no way of preventing him from injecting me. _

"_I'll deal with that," the Black Man then grabs my face in a cruel grip effectively covering my mouth with his hand. "Now be quick!" he tells the doctor as I toss my head back and forth to try and dislodge his hand. A prick in my skin and I know I was too late. I had been tranqed and it was only a matter of time before I passed out from the drug. Pulling my lips back in a snarl I did the only think I could in that situation and bit through the Black Man's glove until coppery liquid spilled my mouth. Eewww…_

_The Black man's reaction was like I hoped, he howled and pulled his hand off my face, clutching at it and swearing in Japanese. Tut tut, such vulgar language. "Are you okay?" Doctor Saka says as he looks to his friend on the other side of the table. I guess I should give him a parting gift too before I faint. I wad my spit up again and this time scoring a direct hit in his eye with a blood laced loogie. I weakly chuckle as I begin to fade away. Even if one of them had hit me it would have been wor-_

I blink to see that everything was as it had been before I had had that little memory lapse. I feel a little disoriented and I find myself looking up at Lady trying to remember why I was looking for a way out of this place. My eyes travel down to her hands to see some disinfectant in one hand and a needle in the other. I set my jaw tight as she prepares to sit down in front of me. I need to move fast and hope that the way out of this place is up on the balcony. It's the only place I haven't looked yet.

Despite my growing remorse I lash out suddenly, standing and shove Lady backwards with both hands at he same time. She let's out a squeak as she goes backwards over the coffee table and I can hear the exclamations of surprise and worry from all around me. It's good to know that I caught them all off guard with that move. I turn towards Orange who stood up with me when I knocked over Lady. His eyes which had been looking at her turned towards me but a fraction of a second to slow to stop or react to me. A part of me says that this isn't right, that I shouldn't be attacking them but I refuse to sit idly by and let them inject more things into me. Orange seems to realize what's about to happen a millisecond before I sucker punch him right in the jaw.

His head snaps back with the force of the impact and he crumples back onto the couch. At least he landed on something soft. "Dhnilepcjleb!" Rat yells and something in the back of my mind whispers at me to get as far away from him as I possibly can. Rat may appear to be old be he was a fighting force to be reckoned with and the last thing I wanted was to be caught in a fight with him. I jump over the couch and Orange who is moaning but doing little more in the way of moving. Hopefully, Rat will be more concerned with his welfare then coming after me. I start a mad dash towards the balcony as soon as my feet touch the ground from jumping over the couch. What's the fastest way from getting up there an-

WHOA!

I had only blinked an eye and suddenly there was Blue standing in front of me looking confused and worried. I don't even remember seeing him for awhile now. Where did he come from so fast? "Mbc, tipw'x jbwwlc hcwb rvb?" he says while looking at me. I had jerked back slightly at his sudden appearance but if he's after me Man, Red, Rat and Lady are certainly right on his tail. I'm not too worried about Orange. He's not going to be moving very fast for awhile or at all for that matter. I have to get Blue out of my way. I grit my teeth. I doubt he'll just step out of my way if I ask him kindly. I'm going to have to go through him.

His eyes seem to harden slightly as I leap at him, masking over the worry and confusion. I have a bad feeling that I bit off a little more then I can chew. I lash out trying to catch him in the side of the face with a right hook only to have his arm block my fist, smacking it off to the side as if it was nothing more then an annoying bug. Jerk. I throw a haymaker at other the other side of his face and I'm not surprise when he effortlessly blocks the strike. Despite the strength behind the hit it is generally a wide swipe and usually seen long before the punch is actually thrown. However even though he blocked the punch I can seem him step backwards slightly to keep his balance after the impact. So Mister Goody Two Shoes can be knocked around. I wonder why none of the Black Men were able to make him stumble like I just did. It's like he wasn't expecting me to attack him.

It serves him right for tricking me.

An unfamiliar ache began to build in my chest. I don't understand. Why would they trick me? How could they trick me? I trusted them. I trusted them as if I had known them my whole life. As if they were my family. They helped me and I fell blindly into their arms as if they were kin. To feel this level of betrayal is like lancing and infected wound. Or one of these headaches that keep popping up at weird intervals like now. I feel like I should be crying in frustration but instead I turn my tears into anger. It's time I stopped playing the confused turtle in distress and start playing the confused turtle who's about to kick your shell threw the brick wall behind you.

I threw another haymaker at the opposite side of his face to distract him from the kick to his side. Hhmm… he blocked both of them. Alright let's try this. Snap kick, dragon punch, palm strike, backwards spin kick. Well he's good. Blue has blocked everything I have thrown at him thus far and the only thing he has done was block. Guess his orders are not to hurt me either. Alright then, let's make this a little more difficult.

I jump up in the air and try to kick him in the side of the head. His eyes go wide with surprise and instead of trying to block my kick he dodges it. Ducking down low and spinning around to come up on the other side of my outstretched leg. "Ypai! Npxlr! Jlw buly ilyl pcm ilea dl ahc ihd mbtc!" he says as he blocks the three rapid strikes I follow the kick up with. I have a feeling he just called in some backup. I need to end this quickly. I'll finish this up with a quick jump kick.

Ooofff! He hit me. For the first time he hit me. Actually it was more of a shove. Just before I could lunch myself off the ground to deliver the kick, Blue put his hand right in the center of my chest and pushed backwards. There wasn't much force behind the push but there didn't need to be. My center of balance had already been compromised by my attempting to kick him and that little shove was all that was needed to send me stumbling backwards. I'm swinging my arms around trying to regain my footing but it's the table that finally catches me. I grab it and use it to steady myself as my eyes look over what's on it. Someone had been in the process of making food by the looks of it. My eyes fall on the large chef's knife that was being used to cut up some celery. I reach for it. It'll be effective cutting through skin as wel-

**NO!! DON'T HURT HIM!!**

An inner voice echoes through my skull all but making my eyes cross with the noise it makes. What the shell was that all about? Why can't I hurt him, he's trying to hurt me! I won't go back to the lab and I'm not letting them drug me again. I reach past the knife grabbing hold of the pepper shaker and pop off the top with my thumb. Here is a less deadly but still highly effective way to make him back off. It seems to satisfy the voice because I don't hear anything telling me not to use it.

I pretend that I had the wind knocked out of me and give a little groan that really isn't forced as I stand up. My ribs are killing me. I kind of wished I had gotten the aspirin from Orange before I knocked him out. My little acting job seems to have fooled Blue. I feel his hand land gently on my shoulder and his voice sounds concern as he says, "Mbcchl? Pyl rbv bfpr?" It's now or never and I spring my trap. Spinning around quickly I throw the entire contents of the shaker right into his face.

Yes! Direct hit! Blue tries to jerk his head back to avoid the pepper but he's too slow. The pepper gets into his eyes, up his nose and into his mouth in a matter of seconds. He scrunches up his face as a powerful sneeze explodes through his nose. That sounds painful. He continues to sneeze and steps away from me as another sneeze nearly knocks him off his feet. His hands come up and begin to rub at his eyes, which is a bad idea. All he's going to do it rub the pepper deeper into his eyes. He should really try to flush them out.

I don't stick around to tell him that of course. Instead I focus on the fact that both Man and Red are coming after me and neither of them look to happy. I grab a nearby chair and throw it as hard as I can at Man, he's closer. He seems shocked that I did that but quickly puts up an arm to knock the chair away and protect his head. I guess the chair wasn't made that well. It seems to have exploded like it was only being held together by will and luck. I kind of feel sorry for it. In its final act it has knocked man down but I don't think he'll stay down for long. I turn heading for the large staircase even though I have a feeling that I can jump up onto the balcony. Somehow.

I dallied to long with Man, Red's now between me and the staircase. I went through Blue –on a technicality- so I'm sure I can go through Red as well. He may be stronger then me but I'll just have to use my brain to match his brawn and be sure he doesn't get a good grip on me. I remember when he just lightly grabbed my shoulder in the alley, he has an impressive grip. I won't last long in a grappling match against him. I wonder if he's ticklish?

I come at him throwing punches right and left. Like I feared he isn't trying to block my punches he's trying to grab my wrists or hands with each strike. I lash out with a kick followed closely by a right hand jab. He blocks both of those but I was hoping for that. Now his face has been completely left open for a haymaker. I see the recognition in his eyes as he realized what I did and then he jerks his head back. "Ypaiple! Mbc'w!" I hear Rat yell but before I can think of why he would yell my fist crashes into the brick wall.

"Mother of…Shell!" I cry as I fall back away from Red clutching at my hand. Crud… I think I broke something. Brick plus hand equals ow. I can hear Red coming up behind me saying something but I ignore it and twist around catching him in the chin. The kick wasn't that strong but it startled him enough to make him step back and clutch at his jaw. I stumble slightly and something digs into my hip. A doorknob! Without even thinking I reach down with my good hand and open the door stepping through it to make a break for freedom only to stop short when I see where I am.

Crud!

I turn and slam the door close, locking it with trembling fingers. There was no way I would have been able to fight my way past Red, I'll have to make my finally stand here. I here a knock on the door and Red's voice say, "Nbdl bc Mbcchl. Balc wil mbby." If he thinks that'll get me to open the door he's mistaken. He'll have to break it down and drag me out of here by my bandanna if he wants me to come out of here. Considering his muscle mass he could easily do that too. I look about the room for any kind of serviceable weapon. Shell! Nothing!

Why did I have to lock myself in a bathroom of all places?!


	6. Chapter 6: In the Doghouse

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_I have to thank Puldoh for the flashback idea. I was going to use something else but I felt this one fit in this part of the story then the one I had planned so thank you Puldoh! And ChibiLover123, I had planned on the whole soap idea but I added the throwing part so thank you as well!_

_I hope I got this chapter out fast enough for everyone. Sorry, I had wanted to get it out yesterday but oh well… forgive me?_

Chapter Six: In the Doghouse

"Mbc, mbc'w dpfl dl oyplf mbtc wil mbby. Rbv ipwl hw tilc H mb wipw." Okay, I need to calm down and think. I'm trapped. There is no way out of here. Not even one of those tiny ones with the small fans to pull bad odors out of bathrooms. I'm glad that it's not bean burritos day. If it was I think I would let them stab me with a hundred needles instead. Actually… no… I don't think I would let them do that. I hate needles.

I look about the room as Red talks to me through the door. I can't understand a word he's saying but it probably has something to do with opening the door for him. Does he really think I would be that stupid to just let him in here if he's after me? Let's see… I could throw a bar of soap at him but I don't think that would slow him down. It would probably just piss him off. If I could somehow shove it down his throat then it would slow him down. Or maybe I could bounce it off his eyes or the bridge of his nose. Hmm… possibly a good weapon. There are several towels but I don't think I could fend him off by whiping him with a towel. If I go for the face it might startle him enough so that I can get out of the bathroom.

That could be their tactic. Send the big scary one into the small confined space after me. His strength would give him the advantage in close range combat and in the small confined space it would be hard for me to avoid him. He could easily restrain me. If I was somehow able to get away from him and out the door, Man and possible even Blue could be right there waiting. I could come out the door and be tacked to the ground by one of them. The very thought of rolling around on the ground, struggling against two or more opponents makes my ribs ache. Speaking of pain I should look at my hand when I get a free second.

I finally settle on the best weapon in the bathroom and pick it up. Swinging it around in my good hand for a second to feel out the weight of my improvised mace I hold my weapon at ready. I must look so stupid. I'm standing here in a bathroom, holding a possibly broken hand as close to my broken ribs as possible and holding a plunger as if it was a katana. Yeah, this isn't one of my best moments. Ever since I woke up I don't think I've even come close to a good moment let alone a best moment. I really need to have stroke of luck or am I just naturally unlucky? The door knob jingles as Red tests it again. You would think after not opening the door by now he would realize I have no interest in coming out. I guess I should be thankful I didn't lock myself in a closet. Orange would have a field day with all the 'coming out of the closet' jokes he could make. How do I know Orange has a sense of humor?

"Wipw'x hw. H'd oyplfhcj mbtc til mbby. Xwpcm opnf, Mbc," Red sounds annoyed. I think he's finally realized I'm not going to open the door. I wonder if he's going to wait out there until I open the door to see why he's not trying to force it open anymore. No, that would be what Blue do. Red's getting ready to kick down the door. Wait… How well do I know these guys?

"Ypaiple! Lcbvji!" Whoa, Rat's pissed off about something. I didn't think such a frail old rat like him could sound that loud and imposing. I'm so glad I didn't get into a fight with him. I don't think he would have seriously hurt me but I also don't think I would have been able to move anytime soon after he was done with me.

"Ovw Xlcxlh-" Red started only to be cut off by Rat again. This time Rat's voice is so quiet I can hardly hear him. Red let's out and exasperated sigh and after another moment I hear him walk away from the door heading back to the center of the room. Rat is talking again. What is he saying? I slowly stand down and approach the door. I keep my plunger at ready just incase this is just another trick. I can just barely make out a muffled conversation on the other side of the room. By the sounds of it Rat is doing most of the talking. What is he saying?

I reach for the doorknob to unlock the door so I can peek out and see what's happening. Actually, that's a bad idea. One of them could be standing just outside the door so when I open it they can force their way inside and wrestle me to the ground. Considering my hand and ribs that wouldn't be that hard. I pull my hand away from the knob and press my ear against the door, listening. I can only make out Rat's tone. I guess it really doesn't matter if I hear what he says or not. I still don't have a clue of what he's saying.

Whatever he has said seems to have pissed off everyone. There's a flurry of voices and none of them sound too happy. If I'm right everyone is putting in their two cents worth on whatever Rat said. I can even hear Orange voice in the maelstrom. Guess I didn't hit him as hard as I had thought. Yeah, now that I think of it he looked more dazed then about to pass out. Why am I relieved that I didn't hurt him?

Rat's talking again and I hear the three turtles mumble something unhappily. Guess whatever Rat told them to do they are going to do. Who is he anyways? Their adoptive father? I know that he can't be there biological father. There aren't enough physical traits between them. They don't even have similar eyes.

I hear movement out in the main room and quickly step back away from the door. It sounds like they're picking things up. Besides throwing the chair I don't think I made that big of a mess. I feel like I should be out there helping them clean up. I did help trash the place even if it was just throwing a chair at Man. Oh yeah, and the pepper. How could I forget the pepper? It has to be all over the floor. I hope Blue's eyes are going to be okay.

Okay, that does it. Why the shell am I so concerned about their well being? They tried to stab me with a needle! They attacked me! They chased me across half the city and herded me like a sheep to slaughter to the construction site where their Black Men buddies were. I can't trust them. I don't even know why they brought me here.

But… They did help me… They helped me when the Black Men attacked and they never drew their weapons on me when they were chasing me across the city… Blue honestly sounded scared when I jumped off the roof and onto the truck… They patched me back up. That's way more then the Black Men would have done. And they didn't attack me… I attacked them. I was the one who shoved Lady backwards over the table and punched Orange in the jaw... and blue never drew his swords during that brief bout either. He just blocked all my hits and when he did finally strike me it was a gentle push. I saw him hit the Black Men a shell of a lot harder then he did me. Red never tried to hit me either… he was just trying to catch me.

Oh… Shell… I think I've made a terrible mistake…

I feel awful. I couldn't have seriously hurt them. What if Blue's allergic to pepper? What if I had hit Orange harder? Oh crud… I threw a chair at Man! If he hadn't put his arms up it might have given him a concussion! My stomach turns unpleasantly and I stagger closer to the toilet just in case I do throw up. And Lady… Oh shell… I might have cracked her skull… The floor is made out of concrete!

I don't know how long I knelt with my head in the toilet dry heaving but it was long enough for the mutants and their two human friends to clean up the place. I 'm sitting here in front of the toilet listening to the sounds of muted explosions from the television and the muffled conversations from beyond the door. I wonder if they know I've been throwing up. It sure was loud enough for me to know. I'm glad I at least had a few sips of water today. Throwing up something is better then nothing that's for sure.

I don't feel like I'm going to throw up anymore. I move slowly, using the toilet seat to help push me up off the- OW! SHELL! That hurt… jeez did that hurt… I'd completely forgotten about my hand. It looks swollen and I can see where the bruising has already started. I don't think I broke my hand… I can still bend it. My fingers are swollen and stiff but it's my wrist that is causing me the most distress. I think I sprained it. I hold it next to the other one and compare them. My hurt wrist is nearly twice the size of my other one!

I get to my feet –without using my injured hand this time- and make my way over to the sink. I turn on the cold water full blast and wait for it to get as cold as possible. Might as well clean off my face while I wait. The water feels good on my calmly skin and I sip water out of my hand cupped hand. It should be cold enough now. I slip my injured hand into the water and let the water flow over it. I hiss slightly, the bricks cut into my knuckles enough that they started bleeding at some point. The dull ache in my wrist and knuckles masked it I guess.

I let my hand soak for a long time. Wish I had a watch or something so I could tell what time it is. Now that the swelling has gone down a bit it's time to wrap it with something but what? I search through the cabinet and under the sink only to find soap, cleaners, and a wide variety of towels. It looks like these guys' cleaned out a bargain basement somewhere. I take the rattiest towel I can find and rip it into several long shreds that I use to wrap around my hand and wrist. Not the best thing to wrap a sprain with but it will have to do for now.

I sit down and lean back against the side of the tub staring at the door. I need to go back out there and… apologize? That is the right thing to do but they have to be so mad at me. I attacked them after all they did was showed me kindness. I sigh, even if I do go out there and apologize how am I going to tell them that? I can't understand a word they are saying and they can't understand me either. What did the Black Men do to me? It had to be from one of those shots they gave me. Somehow it screwed up my mind. Shell… what I wouldn't give to be able to talk to them.

I stifle a yawn as I cross my arms over my chest. I glance off to the side at the plunger that I've kept within grabbing distance just incase. "What do you think?" I mumble to it as my eyes drift back to the door. "Yeah, I agree with you. I go out there right now and they might beat the living stuffing out of me for my rudeness." I… don't think they would beat me up for attack them… but I rather play it safe. I'll wait a little while before going out here and confronting them. I hope they will at least hear me out before the butt whooping begins. If it begins…

I'm unable to stifle another yawn and it escapes. Guess I am kinda tired. It's not every day –at least I think it's only been twenty four since I woke up- that I find myself waking up and escaping from a strange lab. Then to be chased all over the city by mutant turtles like me and get into another fight with the Black Men which I end up getting drugged in. When I wake up I'm in a strange place with the turtles and their friends who try and give me a shot which makes me panic and attack them. Finally, after smashing my hand against a brick wall I lock myself in their bathroom. Yeah, I guess I have every right to be tired it's been a long day…

_-I'm washing my hands in a sink, scrubbing at them extra hard. A mild whimper comes from behind me and I answer it without turning. "Don't even think of moving your jaw." _

_Another grumble and I can practically feel the glare burning into the back of my skull. _

"_If you're going to be mad at anyone be mad at yourself," I said with a long suffering sigh. I knew he wasn't going to be happy with the 'doctor's orders' when I first told them to him. "You were the one who thought it would be a good idea to jump off a fire escape like a lemur and land on that thug." I fill a syringe with Novocain and snap out the bubbles. "If you hadn't screamed like a banshee you might have gotten the drop on him." I turn around and face my patient who is sitting patiently –if a little bit annoyed- on a table waiting for me to say he can go. "But since you did he just step out of the way and you landed face first on the pavement." I inject the Novocain into the side of his jaw. Hopefully that will stem the pain for a little bit longer. "So as you see, this is your own fault." _

_I step away again and drop the needle in a trash can as I grab a packet of frozen peas that had been sitting next to the sink. I throw it too him and he catches it with a mumbled thanks. He holds it to his face as he heads for the door. "And don't you dare open your mouth more then half an inch!" I holler after him. "If you do I'll wire your jaw shut!" It had been a big enough hassle to get him to sit still long enough for me to set the fracture jaw I'd hate to think how I would get him to stay still long enough for me to wire it shut. His only answer to that was to roll his eyes and walk out the room._

_A trailing orange ribbon was following in his wake...-_

I blink my eyes open. Did I fall asleep? Judging by how much grit is in my eyes and how stiff my joints are I would say yes. I stretch my arms up above my head hearing a series of loud cracks. Sleeping against a bathtub and on a tiled floor is never a good idea. I get up to my feet and step over to the sink, slashing some cold water into my face to help me wake up a little more. I look at myself in the mirror as I dry my face. What a strange drea –

The masks…

The other three turtles and I are wearing the same style of masks. The masks are different colors but they're all shaped the same. I pull the tails of my mask forward over my shoulder. All the masks' tails are about the same length but mine looks slightly more frayed on the ends then the others. It also looks like there is a faint stain at the tips like they had fallen into oil or grease. I twist my head around and look at the knot in the back. As far as I can tell the knots are the same too. So if we're all wearing the same style of mask does that mean I know them?

I look at the door. I need to go out there and get some answers. I need to know who these turtles are and who I am. As far as I can tell they are not my enemies… but I'm not entirely sure who they are. They seem to care for my wellbeing so I guess that means that they are at least allies. I finger the tails on my mask. They could be eve closer then that. They might be my friends.

I walk to the door and unlock it. Err… I might not want to just burst out there. They could still be mad at me. I slowly turn the handle and open the door, wincing as it creaks. Now everyone will know that I just opened the door. The door is barely opened a crack but no one seems to be pushing against it to try and get it open that's a good sign. No one was waiting for me to open the door. I wonder if they are all asleep or something. I think it's late but without a clock I have no idea. With a gulp I open the door further and peek out around it into the room beyond.


	7. Chapter 7: Very Early Morning Snack

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Oh yeah, brotherly fluffy goodness! _

Chapter Seven: Very Early Morning Snack

The room is kind of dark and quiet. Almost too quiet. Heh, always wanted to say that. I guess everyone really did go to bed. Why would they leave the televiso- oh. Blue's still awake. He's just sitting in the old recliner with the TV playing with almost a nonexistent volume on what looks like a news channel. He's just watching me as I peek around the door, the news no longer holding his interest. We lock eyes for a minute. He doesn't seem angry, that's a good sign. I lean a little further out the door and glance along the walls at either side to see if someone is hiding there. No. What about above me? Nope, no one up there either. I guess everyone else did go to bed.

I look back to where Blue is. He's still just sitting there not even moving save for the occasionally blink. What exactly is he doing out here? Judging by the way he seems so fascinated with me, I guess he was waiting for me to come out of the bathroom. Or maybe he is trying to keep me in here by intimidating me? Nah, if he wanted to do that all he would have to do is pull out his swords. I take one more look around the room to make sure no one is going to jump out of the shadows and start beating on me before stepping all the way out the door.

Blue seems happy that I've come out of the bathroom. As the door softly clicks shut behind me we make eye contact again. He's smiling at me which makes his eyes seem to light up even more with a happy glow. All the previous courage I had gained in the bathroom leaves me suddenly and I feel very alone and suddenly scared. I know I should apologize but the words seem to get stuck in my throat.

Blue slowly stands up the recliner which creaks in protest and walks toward me. I tighten my hand on the door knob that I'm still holding. I take a calming breath and resist the urge to duck back into the bathroom. He's just walking towards me, nothing big. He doesn't look mad and his body language isn't suggesting that he's going to hurt me so just calm down. My eyes have traced down to about the middle of his chest and when I realize this he's already about two feet from me. Oh shell. I look up into his eyes to see that same expression on his face. "What?" I ask when he just stands there watching me watch him. He chuckles and then reaches out to take my arm to… to…

Hug me?

He gently pulls me into a hug that I can easily pull out of. He's not trying to hold me there but I can feel the strength in his arms. He could easily pin me down and barely have to exert any energy to keep me down. I'm glad he isn't trying to do that. My ribs are already aching with this gentle hug. It's actually kind of nice to just be hugged. He hasn't tried to increase his hold or let me go. I wonder what he's waiting for. That sounded rude. I guess I should hug him back or something? Maybe that's what he's waiting for.

It takes me a second to let go of the door knob and put my hands around Blue's shell. I cringe at the idea of trying to get them up and around his neck. That would really make my ribs hurt. Besides his arms are in the way. This is awkward. I'm hugging a turtle –another male turtle- and I don't even know him very well. This seems to be what Blue wanted because his arms tighten a fraction and I feel his head gently bump against the side of mine where it stays. This is actually really nice. I feel so… safe. Even if the Black Men suddenly filled the room I don't think I would be scared. Maybe a little worried but not scared.

I let my head rest on his shoulder before turning it into the side of his neck. Yeah, this is definitely nice. I guess I should thank him for this among other things. I still have to apologize too. "Thanks, Blue," I mumble into his collar bone. "I really needed one of these."

I swear he half nuzzles the side of my head with his and his arms hold me just a little closer then before. I'm surprised that he's not crushing the life out of me yet. "Hw'x jbhcj wb ol bfpr, Mbc. Hw'x jbhcjwb ol bfpr." he whispers and, after one last squeeze, he let's me go. I really wish he wouldn't let me go. I could have fallen asleep in his arms… that sounded so wrong. He gives my hand a gentle squeeze before letting me go completely. If he was trying to reassure me that it was going to be alright with out using words he did an excellent job.

Blue points to me and then makes it look like his picking something up out of one hand and popping in his mouth with the other before looking at me expectantly. It has been a while since I have eaten. Actually I don't remember the last time it was I ate anything. I nod 'yes' to him and my stomach growls its agreement. Okay, that was a little embarrassing. Blue just shakes his head with a smile on his face and calmly walks towards the kitchen with me trailing in his wake.

Before I can even begin to flip through the cupboards for something even remotely edible Blue takes my arm and pushes me into a seat. "You really don't have to cook anything for me. I can do it myself," I tell him. Oh shell, he doesn't even understand what I'm saying. I go to stand up and he lightly pushes down on my shoulder. Why would he- now he's holding his hand up with his palm facing me. Does he want me to stay? I look up at his eyes and though they still hold that same gentle warmth they also hold a look of seriousness that seems to demand that his orders be followed. I think I can feed myself but I don't want to make him mad at me. It's a miracle that he isn't mad at me right now.

I nod my head again and sit back in the seat a bit. See, Blue, no intention of getting up anytime soon. He seems satisfied with my actions and begins to move about the kitchen opening several cupboards and removing items. Judging by the pot he's pulled out and the contents of the can he just put into the pot he's making soup for me. Chicken noodle. Mmmm… I like chicken noodle. It's my favorite. Does he know it's my favorite? Is that why he's making it for me? Or did he just guess?

After the can is refilled with water and poured into the pan he moves over to the fridge and pulls out a bottle of water. When was it the last time I drank anything? Sometime before my nap on the bathroom floor, however long ago that was. Blue opens it as he walks across the floor and hands it to me. I take it from him with a swift 'thank you' and twist off the cap so I can gulp it down. It tastes so sweet. Isn't it fascinating that when you haven't drank enough water and are dehydrated how good water seems to taste?

Hey! What?! I glare at Blue as he pulls the water away from me with a glare of his own that he returns with an equal intensity. Actually he looks more concerned then angry. I wonder if this turtle has a problem with ulcers. He always seems overly worried about every little minuet detail, which has to equal lots of stress. He points at a clock hanging above a fri- Shell! It's nearly two in the morning! Blue spins his finger around the clock quickly then does it more slowly. With the same hand he acts as if he's drinking the water from the bottle and then makes a 'gacking' noise and points his finger down his throat. Ummm… he hands me the water bottle back and watches me as I take it from him. What did he mean? The water is going to make me sick? What was with the clock then? Hmmm…Oh. If I drink the water to fast it will make me sick. I think I've been sick enough in the past few hours and I really don't want to throw up again for a while. A very long while.

I take a few sips of water before setting the bottle down on the table. Blue gives me another gentle smile and turns back to the kitchen again. Yeah, I guess I guessed what he was trying to tell me right. Its funny watching a giant turtle move about a kitchen. I guess I shouldn't be too awed by this but I am. His body… actually all the turtles' bodies, including my own, are a perfect cross between human and turtle anatomy. It's fascinating. I wonder how we became like this. I'm going to have to assume that we weren't naturally created like this. We had to have been part of a genetic experiment or an accident involving chemicals.

A bowl of steaming soup is set in front of me bring me out of my contemplations. I turn to him and press my hands flat against each other as if I was praying. I bow slightly before I realize what I'm doing. Huh? Why would I did I do that? Blue seems just as stunned as I am but he returns the bow. His is deeper and looks a lot more formal but that's probably because he is standing up rather then sitting down. He gives me another soft smile before going over to a kettle that he had set on the stove earlier with the pot of soup.

For the next few minutes the room is filled with Blue's clanking in the bathroom and me blowing on the hot soup. It's just barely to hot for me to eat without scalding my tongue. Oh well, I'll be able to devoured it in a few minutes anyways I can wait. Blue joins me at the table with a cup of tea. I'm going to have to see if I can get some of that when I'm done with my soup and water. Building up my nutrients and liquids are more important right now then a cup of tea. If it's made right it could help with that.

A gentle touch on the elbow of my injured arm makes me look away from my soup. Blue gestures to my wrapped arm. I guess if he wants to look at it he can. I probably should get some ice on it and wrap it in an ace bandage or something. Some ibuprofen to help knock down the swelling would be a god idea too. I nod my head and take a spoonful of soup blowing on it right before I put it in my mouth. Mmmm… just right…

Out of the corner of m eye I watch as Blue unwraps my wrist taking extra care not to bang it around or stress it I anyway. Thankfully. With the bindings being unwrapped I can start to feel my wrist begin to swell again. Blue frowns at my hand and wrist when he finally gets it all unwrapped. Gently he lays it down in the pile of towel strips and goes to the freezer. He places an ice pack wrapped in a hand towel down on it which already makes it feel so much better.

As the ice does its work I turn back to my soup and Blue to his tea. Besides the clicking of the clock and my slurping the whole place seems dead quite. Actually, if I listen really closely, I can hear snoring coming from up on the second floor. I guess that the balcony is an open hallway and there are bedrooms off it. The snores are loud but familiar and… comforting? I look up at the roof. Do I have a room up there as well?

"Mbc?" Blue's hand again touches my elbow. "Pyl rbv bpr?" He sounds worried. Again. I wonder how much ulcer medication he goes through in a day. I guess since I haven't looked at anything other then my bowl, bottle of water and him he's worried that something is wrong. He really needs to take a chill pill or something. I smile gently at him and give him a thumbs up. It's the best way for me to tell anyone I'm alright at least until I can figure out a better form of communication. Charades and sign language is only going to get us so far. I doubt there is anyway of them telling me what has happened to me. Or who I am.

Blue has finished his tea and has turned his attention back to my hand and wrist. After a more clinical examination he goes into the living room and comes back with what looks like an old metal tool box. He opens it and begins going through the contents. Sitting up a little more in my chair I see that the box is full of medical paraphernalia. It looks like they went into a pharmacy and bought the place completely out of basic medical stuff. There is everything from Advil to pressure tape to heating pads and splints. A splint would be a good idea about now.

Blue seems to read my mind. Either that or he has just dealt with this too many times. Blue first swaps at the cuts on my knuckles with a disinfect of some kind before putting band aids over them. A padded splint is very carefully press to the underside of my hand and wrist which is then wrapped in place with and ace bandage. He's definitely done this a lot.

He pulls out a bottle of pills and gives me two. He reaches for my now empty water bottle and I decide now would be the best time to ask for a cup of tea. I reach out with my bad hand to stop him but before I can even touch him he stops. I point to his empty cup of tea and hen at me. I get another smile and a nod before he turns back to the stove. Before I can even blink a cup of tea is set lightly in front of me and Blue retrieves himself a fresh cup. Mmmmm… green tea with a touch of something else. Chamomile perhaps? It would make sense to give me and herbal relaxant especially after everything I have done.

I sigh. I need to apologize to him, to all of them really, but I can start with Blue. I should take a moment to find the right words –oh just quick stalling- just get it over with. "Blue," I wince as my words seem to echo about the room. That was louder then I thought. I take the last gulp of tea to help steal my resolve but I still feel very out of place and lost. Oh well it was worth a try, I guess. "I'm… I'm sorry. For everything that I've done. You and the others were nice enough to help me, to take me in, and all I've done is give you trouble. I even attacked you. I don't suppose you've had many house guests do that before." I let out another sigh but his time in frustration and not exasperation like earlier. "I know you can't understand a word of what I just said but I had to tell you how sorry I was for everything and to thank you properly." I know I should bow again but this time I'm going to do it right. I push my chair away from the table and fall to my knees. "Thank you, Blue, for everything you have done for me," I bend at the waist until my forehead is almost touching the floor and my hands are pressing into the floor directly in front of my face. Now wasn't I suppose to wait for something? What was it?

I hear the scraping of a chair but I don't dare to look up. That's disrespectful. I think. I stay still but somehow I know Blue is returning the exact bow to me. Now do I wait for him to stand up or does he wait for me? I think it's me. I sit up slowly but remain on my knees with out looking at him yet. In my peripheral I see him sit up and regard me for a moment before he stands up again. He reaches down and I take his hand so he can pull me back to my feet. I finally work up the courage to look at him again and he's giving me that same affectionate half smile. He reaches up and rubs my head in a way that if I had hair it would be tossed back and forth.

With of a sweep of his hand gesturing to follow, Blue heads back out to the living room area. It doesn't surprise me when he gestures for me to sit on the couch. I was planning on sitting on it anyways. He grabs a folded blanket off the coffee table and turns back to me. With a gentle push on my shoulder he topples me over on the couch. It couldn't have been that hard. I'm tired enough as it is. I wiggle about and get into a more comfortable position as he drapes the blanket over me. He sits on the coffee table watching me as I yawn and nuzzle the pillow that my head is on with a smile on his face. Yeah, I know I can be very cute when I want to be. Get over it, Blue.

I'm barely awake when Blue begins talking but I'm too tired to open my eyes again and look at him. Besides he might think I'm asleep and whatever he's saying he might want to say to me when I'm asleep even though he knows as well as I do I have no clue what he or anyone else is saying. "Rbv xibvemc'w ol pabebjhqhcj wb dl kby pcrwihcj, Mbc. Hk pcrwihcj H xibvem ol pabebjhqhcj wb rbv. Hk H ipmc'w aylxxvylm rbv hcwb dpfhcj Ypai wipw ohfl kby p aylxlcw wilc rbv tbvemc'w ipul jbcl wb wil gvcfrpym pebcl. Tilc rbv xphm rbc tlyl jbhcj wilyl H xibvem ipul jbcl thwi rbv. Hk pcrwihcj H kphelm rbv, Mbcchl, pcm kby wipw H'd xbyyr." His voice seems to take on a darker sound and if I was more awake I'm pretty sure a shiver would have run down my spine. He sounds positively eerie like that. "Pcm tilc H fcbt rbvy jbhcj wb ol peyhjiw, H'd jbhcj wb khcm wil jvr tib mhm wihx wb rbv pcm dpfl ihd apr." I feel his hand trace down the side of my cheek, "H xtlpy il'ee thxi il ipm cluly lulc wibvjiw bk fhmcpaahcj rbv hc wil khrxw aepnl or wil whdl H'd mbcl thwi ihd. Wipw'x p aybdhxl."

He traces his hand down the side of my cheek again before I hear him get up and move away. The old recliner creeks slightly as he sits back down in it. I wonder if he's going to stay there all night? Yes, I know he will. He's blaming himself for something but I don't know what. Bet whatever it is has something to do with whatever he just told me. I'll have to talk to him about it later… after I get some sleep.


	8. Chapter 8: Morning Coffee

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_One of Mikey's lines gave me a headache but I think it was well worth it. Hopefully it will provide a challenge to those who have figured out the code._

Legendary Chimera_ pointed out that I had Donnie used Casey's name in one of his flashbacks (and he's going to use April' in this chapter). Trust me, there's a reason for that. It will all be explained eventually, along with everything else in this story._

Chapter Eight: Morning Coffee

Mmm…

Ugh…

I feel like I've been run over by a truck which then back over me because the idiot behind the wheel wasn't sure if I was dead yet.

Ick… morning mouth. I smack my lips in a halfhearted attempt to get rid of the disgusting taste. Geez, how long I have been asleep? Judging by the stiffness and heavy feeling of my body I think it's safe to say for awhile. Either that or I just haven't moved around at all. I am in the same position that I was in last night so I'm guessing it the later of the two. I must have been out like a light.

I can hear voices in the background but sleep is keeping them muffled and I wouldn't be able to understand them anyways so who cares what they are saying. It sounds like Blue, Orange and Red are in the room. I sigh into my pillow. I probably should get up. It would be rude just to snooze on their couch all day even if it sounds like a good idea. I snuggle down into the blankets a little more then before. Yeah, I could stay here all day. I wonder what time it is anyways? Extra sleep time as far as I am concerned.

Wait… what's that?

It was in the room last night. It's comforting and alluring in its own respect. Is it enough to convince me to get out of bed? Yes, most definitely yes. I roll over to- Oomff! Okay, no one saw that right? I struggle to my feet, kicking off the blankets in the process. I hope no one just saw me roll off the couch. Movement out of the corner of my eye makes me look toward the kitchen to see the three turtles standing and sitting around the table looking worried, startled and each seemed to have a touch of humor in their eyes. Talk about embarrassing.

I yawn and walk toward the kitchen trying for everything in the world to act like I did not just roll off the couch. Judging by how Orange's shoulders are quivering slightly I failed miserable. Oh well. Now that I'm up I might as well go get it. I walk toward the kitchen, as I pass the table I give the other turtles a wave. "Morning guys," I mumble even though I know they don't understand me. I sure they can figure out what I just said. Right now I want some of that sweet elixir on the counter.

Cups are in the cupboard on the left of the sink. Milk and sugar are somewhere in the pile of food and junk on the table. I pour it out of the pot and head for the table where I sit down between Orange and Red. There's the sugar, two spoons of that. The milk is next to the… rubber chicken? Do I want to know why there is a rubber chicken on the table? No. No I don't. A dash of milk, just enough to change the black color to a dark brown, and now a sip to make sure its just right. I sigh, perfect. I set the mug down and put my forehead on my arm. I am so not a morning turtle.

"Lulc thwi pdclxhp, Mbc npc'w xwprw wil mpr thwibvw nbkkll," Red says. Yeah, Red, whatever. How did I know where everything was anyways? Shell, it's too early to think about this. Maybe after another couple of cups of coffee I'll be able to figure it out. Is Blue snickering at me too? Nice to know I'm the comedic relief in the morning. I look up and give all three of them a half hearted glare. It's not nice to pick on the half asleep guy.

I stop glaring when I notice the large bruise on Orange's jaw. That doesn't look good. I take another sip off coffee before I reach over and grab the back of his neck. He… squawks? I didn't know turtles could squawk. I drag his head closer to me so I can get a better look at the deep bruise. Hmmm… it doesn't look broken. I tip his head a little so I can get a better look at it in the light. Orange has stopped struggling but whether it's from him being shocked at me grabbing him or he has realized I'm just looking at his injury I don't know. I run my finger along his jaw bone, pressing down slightly and feeling for any irregularities. Everything seems to be in order. I don't feel the bone giving at all under my finger so I'm guessing that it isn't broken or fractured.

Orange began squawking like a bird again when I started pressing on the bruise. "Bt! Mbc! Zvhw hw! Payhe peylpmr ebbflm pw hw! Hw'x cbw oybflc! Xilee, wipw ivywx! Mbc! Xwba!" He's also beginning to struggle again. At least Red is getting a kick out of this. He's laughing his head off and Blue's chuckling too. Nice to know they're finding this amusing. Orange's jaw checks out but there could be damage to his teeth. I let him go and gesture to Blue that I need a flashlight by placing my hands about seven inches apart then pointing up to the light above the table. He nods and gets up from the table, pulling one out of a drawer next to the sink.

He tosses it to me and I catch it one handed before reaching over and grabbing the back of Orange's shell as he tried to sneak away. Nice try, Orange. I may be half asleep but I'm not that asleep to not notice an oversized turtle trying to sneak away from me. Especially with this light in the room, if there weren't any lights, he may have been able to get away with it. I twist his head around again and with one hand press where his jaw and skull come together. The pressure makes him open his mouth to dull the pain. I turn on the light and look around in his mouth. All teeth are present and accounted for. Good. I don't see any cuts inside there and it doesn't look like he bit his tongue. For being sucker punched he got off lucky. I guess I wasn't hitting him as hard as I could. "Congratulations, Orange. You get a clean bill of health." I let him go and he's on the other side of the kitchen whimpering about something and holding his jaw. I sit down to enjoy my coffee again, setting the flashlight down on the table next to the rubber chicken. I really should ask someone about that. That's just weird and that's coming from a five foot tall turtle.

Shell, I'm out of coffee. I start to get up only to have the pot appear in front of me. Red refills my cup and his own. Before I can thank him he's back over at the coffee maker setting up another pot. I guess he's not much of a morning turtle either. I yawn again and go about making up another cup of coffee. Mmmm… caffeine… After a few sips I beginning to feel awake enough to try and figure out how I knew where everything was. I guess I've been here a lot or something. Everything is familiar. I might spend the night here often or something. Even the snores upstairs from last night were familiar.

Looking over Orange reminded me of that dream I had in the bathroom last night. Was that really a dream? It seemed so real. Am I a medic or something? No, that doesn't sit quite right with me. I don't know that much about medicinal practices. I know some stuff -mostly emergency care and how to stabilize patients- but I barely know anything about surgeries or trauma care. Awww crud… I've got another headache. These headaches are probably a side effect of me trying to remember things. Hmmm… that makes sense. If I've suffered some form of brain trauma it's only going to be a matter of time before I remember everything. I'm not looking forward to the headaches and I can only hope that there is no permanent brain damage. I might never be able to recover my memory then.

That would royally suck.

Huh? A plate full of pancakes is suddenly set down in front of me. Who made pancakes? Red's setting down plates that each has tall stacks on top of them in front of everyone and Orange is putting out silverware and several bottles of syrup. I'm really not that hungry but how can I be disrespectful? Now which syrup is which? The last thing I'm going to need is more sugar so which is the real stuff? Is it just me or does the manufactures make the bottles look exactly alike. Why can't Orange get the syrup with the bottle in the shape of a lady anyways? It would make this easier.

Red sits down next to me setting a full pot of coffee down between us. I guess he knows me well. He grabs one of the bottles and hands it to me. I take it and pour a small amount on one of my pancakes to test it. Yup, it's the real stuff. I guess Red really does know me well. I wonder how many times I've been here for breakfast anyways. Must be a lot if Red knows how much coffee I drink and which syrup I prefer.

We eat in relative silence. I didn't realize how hungry I was until I had started eating. That bowl of soup seems so long ago even though it's only been about five hours. Of course there's no telling how much I was given to eat during my imprisonment. If anything at all. At least I don't remember them giving me anything. I can't remember most of my memories so I might've just forgotten if they fed me. Somehow I have a feeling I wouldn't have cooperated with them anyways, they weren't very nice. The memory of me being strapped to the table in the lab showed me how 'kind' they were. I wonder why doctor Saka wasn't allowed to punch me. The Black Man said something about needing me undamaged and intact. Were they planning on dismembering me or something? I wonder what they wanted from me anyways.

Red grabs a can of soda out of the fridge and says, "Npee dl kby aypnwhnl." In a blink of an eye, he jumps up on the wall and pushes himself up from there. He rolls over the railing on the walkway above and vanishes somewhere up there. How the heck did he do that? I wonder if I can do that. Considering how easily I could move over the rooftops and the wide array of acrobatics I know it can't be that hard.

"Tipw'x va thwi Ypai?" Orange said as he began gathering up plates and silverware. "Il'x ollc pnwhcj tlhym luly xhcnl tl oybvjiw Mbc opnf. Tlee, tlhymly wilc Ypai cbydpeer hx."

Blue sets the cups he was carrying down next to the sink. "H'ee jb wpef wb ihd. Xll hk rbv npc jlw Mbc wb lpw dbyl." He looks pointedly at the almost gone pot of coffee. He better not be thinking of taking this away from me. "Pcm jlw ihd wb epr bkk wil nbkkll. Bcl abw hx tpr wbb dvni kby p wvywel." He turns and walks away, heading for the staircase that leads upstairs. I wonder if he can do the jump flip thing too. If he's anything like Red and I he should be able to. Guess he feels it's more proper to walk up the stairs or something. Or he's giving Red a moment to himself before they talk. Now why would I know he was going to go up stairs and talk to Red?

"Mblxc'w il vxvpeer myhcf p kvee abw?" Orange hollered across the room. Is he always so loud? Not getting any kind of answer Orange rolls his eyes and mutters something under his breath that's so quiet I can barely hear it and I'm less then a few feet away. I guess he really can be quiet when he wants to be. He smil- uh oh… he only smiles like that when he knows he's about to do something he knows he's not suppose too. I take a sip of coffee from my cup which is almost empty again and peer into the mug. I wonder if there is a way to make a coffee cup that never runs out of coffee. I'll have to work on that one later. Without even looking I smack the back of Orange's hand as he reaches for the quarter full coffee pot sitting next to me. I look at him with a dead serious face, "Don't even think about it." He throws his hands up in mock surrender. At least he listens. Sometimes. Better make that less the five percent of the time. I have to be around these three a lot if I know so much about them. Maybe we're neighbors.

Orange snaps his fingers to catch my attention and points at my plate. He acts like he's scooping food into his mouth and then holds his two fingers up. I look down at my plate. Seconds would be nice. I look at the pot of coffee. I wonder if I can make another pot. I… think I know where everything is to do that. I point at the coffee pot and look at him. I'm not surprised to see him frown and shake his head no. He pushes the pot near me and then 'chops' one hand with the other. His fingers curl backwards into a fist before the blade of his other hand hits them but it's obvious to what he's telling me. I've been cut off. Darn. I still have about another two cups. That should do me for now. Maybe I can get some more this afternoon.

As Orange begins to putter about in the kitchen making more pancakes I fill a cup of coffee and look out into the main room. There's a collection of arcade games over there and… a half pipe? Why on Earth would anyone put a half pipe in their living room? I'm asking this about a group of mutant turtles who have rubber chickens sitting on their table during breakfast. I roll my eyes. Anyways on the other side of the room is that large table Lady was at the other day. I wonder what books are on it.

I take my cup of coffee and walk over to the table. Shell, I can't read any of these. I flip through several pages. Look like some form of anatomy books or something judging from the pictures. I make sure to leave the books open to the pages they were left open on before. Lady has to be some kind of doctor or something and is trying to figure out what's wrong with me. She not getting anywhere's near me with a needle again no matter how much she wants to help me.

I look back over at the kitchen after I'm done flipping through some of the books. Orange still has his back to the table. I wonder if he realizes I'm gone? He's humming a ridiculous sounding song. I probably should get back over there before he freaks when he notices I'm missing. That would just be my luck too. I start back across the floor taking a sip of coffee. Hey what are those little red lights all in a row over there? Wow. Just… wow… that wall is covered in monitors and look at the compu-

_-"This is ridiculous."_

"_How do you think I feel?" I said without remorse over the microphone on the headset. My fingers are flying one of the keyboards as my eyes scan over the command prompt and DOS programs running on several of the monitors. "There's enough pain medication in my system to knock out a small elephant and my leg is itchy."_

"_At least you have some idea of what you are doing." The voice is filled with a combination of annoyance and frustration. "I can barely remember half of the things you explained to me before we left."_

_I sigh and stop typing for a minute. One hand reaches up and pinches the bridge of my nose while the other just rests on the keyboard. "Why do you think I made you take a headset with you? I didn't expect you to become a computer engineer in the ten minute explanation of what you had to do so I could hack into their computer system from here."_

"_Yeah, yeah," he mumbled. Oh shell, he's guilt tripping himself again. I shake my head I annoyance. Why does he always blame himself for our stupid mistakes? _

"_Y'know it's not your fault right?" Even though he's on the other side of the city I can practically see his mouth open to say it was. "Look, any of us would've taken that hit for him. We may not be genetically linked but we were raised like a family and he took the little brother title at an early age. Since I was closest and the weakest it was only natural that I took the hit to save him. That way the three of you could fight on and I wouldn't be getting in the way anymore."_

_Silence stretched for a moment of the headset. "You're not weak and you never get in the way in a fight," he said sounding supportive and comforting. Oh shell did I say that? "Just because you don't like fighting doesn't make you weak. Besides look at everything you can do that the rest of us can't. None of us could hack a system by a remote relay while sitting thirty miles away with a broken leg."_

_I look down at my leg which is in a white cast and sitting on a stool to help keep it elevated. There's this picture of a cartoon turtle face sticking out his tongue and giving me a thumbs up. He said he drew it to show how much he appreciated me saving him. That muscle bound steroid induce gang member would have punched him through the floor if I hadn't jumped on him. Being thrown through the wall wasn't fun either and I don't remember coming back here but it was worth it. I would do it again if I had to but hopefully that won't be for awhile yet._

_Two muted thumps come from over the headset. "Are you okay?" I ask as the breath catches in my throat. Someone should have gone with him to help guard his shell instead of acting as a distraction over on the other end of the building. I should be there help-_

"_Sorry," I sigh in relief as his voice comes back over the headset. "Had a couple of guards to deal with."_

"_That's okay," I try and tell myself that my hands are not shaking but I know that's a lie. "Let's get this done before anyone catches me out of bed."_

_He chuckles over the headset, "You think she'll do that?"_

"_Tie me to the bed and wrap my hands in duct tape so I can't fiddle with any of my projects so I can get some actual sleep? I know April, she'll do it."_

"_Okay, you're in."_

_My fingers begin flying over the keyboard as I begin tearing through their mainframe pulling out the information on their shipping manifests. "Okay, don't let anyone pull out that wireless adapter got it. I'll let you know when I'm done."_

"_Okay Do- _

Woah… Okay… what? I blink a few times to try and clear my head. I must have had another memory or something. Yeah, it had to be another memory. My head is kind of fuzzy. I'm also kind of dizzy. Wait, last time I remembered something I was fine. I was sleeping during that memory of Orange but the memory of being strapped to the table didn't make me feel like this. I'm holding my head again as it pounds and I'm trembling faintly with a thin layer of sweat built up on my skin. Maybe it's because of how long ago a particular memory happened or the adrenaline may have canceled out the effects. Hmmm… Wait a second shouldn't I be on the ground? And what's that noise? It almost sounds like-

Orange?

"-jbwwnip. Elb! Ypai! H nbvem vxl xbdl ilea ilyl!" Orange has his arms wrapped around me, holding me up. Judging by how his arms are quivering he can't do much else. He should just lay me down before he pulls something. Oh crud, I dropped the mug. That had been half full too. I guess that's why he hasn't put me down yet. I have to admit I'm not too thrilled about being put on the ground in the middle of that mess either. Besides I might cut myself on one of the ceramic shards. I try to stand up to help take some of the weight off of Orange but my knees tremble with the strain and I'm barely able to move an inch before falling limply back into his arms. Orange shushes at me like I was a two year old, "Hw'x bfpr Mbc. H jbwwnip. Rbv'yl bfpr. Gvxw yleps."

"Tipw wil xilee epaalclm!" Red doesn't sound too pleased.

"HtpxdpfhcjihdxbdldbylapcnpflxpcmhltpxgvxwebbfhcjpybvcmwilephypcmHwvyclmdropnfbkpxlnbcmpcmilpymwildvjorbflpcmwvyclmopnfwbxllihdnevwnihcjpwihxilpmpcmilxwvdoelmpcmtbvem'ulkpeelcovwHtpxpoelwbnpwnihidolkbylilihwwiljybvcmpcmpcmil'xwyldoehcjpcmxtlpwhcjpcmHwihcfilipxpklulypcmilxlldxmpqlmpcm-" I wonder if Orange knows that he needs oxygen to survive.

Another pair of arms wraps around me and gently pulls me from Orange who let's go rather reluctantly. It has to be Blue. "Nped mbtc, Dhflr. Elw'x jlw ihd eprhcj mbtc." Yup, it's Blue. I try to help only to have him shush me too. "Yleps Mbc. Hw'x peyhjiw." They two of them maneuver me around so that I'm laying flat on my shell looking up at the ceiling. Blue's cradling my head and taking my pulse with Orange kneeling on my other side and Red standing next to Blue. Deja vu. I try to sit up only to have Orange push down on my shoulders. "Ihx avexl hx ypnhcj," Blue mumbles under his breath before looking up at Orange. "Dhflr, jb jlw Dpxwly Xaehcwly." With a nod of his head Orange turns and runs off. "Ypai, npee Payhe pcm pxf ily wb mbdl ilyl."

"H jbw p olwwly hmlp," Red says as he takes up the space that Orange has vacated. "Rbv npee Parhe pcm H'ee jlw Mbc bc wil nbvni."

"Ypai-" Blue starts to argue but then just stops. The two of them seem to have a staring contest over who should do what. No, it's more personal then that. It's like they're talking through their eyes. That didn't make any sense. That last memory screwed up my mind more then I thought. Blue sighs, "Peyhjiw. Mbc'w elw ihd jlw va bc ihx btc. Il dpr nbeepaxl pjphc." Red huffs slightly but seems… content? I really wouldn't call it happy. Smug, maybe. Red slips an arm under my knees and the other under my shoulders. He is not going to try and pick m-

HOLY SHELL! HE PICKED ME UP!

I throw my arms around his shoulders as he stands with me in his arms. I'm not sure whether I should be embarrassed or amazed that he can lift me so easily. Embarrassed is just higher on the list. I am perfectly capable of walking despite what they may think. I'm only tipsy and sick for about one minute after I remember something. It's not like I have a seizure or something more traumatizing. I just fall over and feel sick for a minute afterwards before I feel fine again. I guess I'll have to explain that to Orange so he can tell the others not to panic next time. I know there's going to be a next time. I do have my entire past to remember. Shell, I'm not looking forward to being sick after every flashback and if they freak every time this happens it's going to be a pain too.

Red carefully walks across the floor making sure not to jostle me around too much. It's nice to know they care. When I first woke up I though I was alone and remembering that empty feeling makes a shiver run up my spine. I don't know what would've happened to me if they hadn't found me but I doubt it would have been beneficial to my health. Especially if the Black Men caught up to me.

With the same measure of carefulness he used carrying me over to the couch, Red lays me down on it and pulls the blanket off the floor. It seems so odd to see him doing something like this. Usually he's more… gruff then this. A little rough around the edges. There's a trace of helplessness in his eyes as he spreads the blanket over me. That's not right. Red would take on everyone in the world if he had to without a trace of either helplessness or fear in his eyes yet I can see both in his eyes. Is he upset because of what happened to me?

I need to show them that I'm alright. At least to help alleviate their fears and get that look out of Red's eyes. He looks so un-Red like that. I start to sit up only to have Red push me back down on the couch. I try again and get the same response for him along with a slight glare. I give him one back and try again. Okay this is going to get annoying. Red has pushed me back onto the couch again but this time he keeps his hand on the center of my chest and is applying gentle pressure. Guess he wants me to stay here.

I blow out a gusty sigh, "I guess you're not going to let me have my last cup of coffee either." He frowns as if he's trying to understand me. I go to get up again and he pushes me back down. "Nope, I didn't think so," I say as I relax onto the couch. I wonder how long he's going to keep me here. Bet by the time he let's me up the coffee is going to be cold.


	9. Chapter 9: Eight Days

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Puldoh- If you like last chapter then you'll love the end of this one. _

_Legendary Chimera- Who said anything about this being a normal case of amnesia?_

Chapter Nine: Eight Days

There is a fine line between being worried and being annoying and I think that my hosts are getting very close to crossing the line. It's nice to know that they care and everything but this is getting so annoying. I'm not an invalid or disabled. If anything it's good that I remember that time on the computer. It shows me that my memory is coming back, slowly but surely. It's not something to worry or panic about. "Look, I'm fine so would you let me up?" I said trying not to sound to exasperated.

Red is about as unmoving as a mountain. He's keeping a hand on my to prevent me from getting up and no matter how much I push against him it doesn't seem to faze him in the least. I know he's strong. I mean come on, he picked me up as if I was a feather and I know for a fact that a turtle of my size has to be at least around two hundred pounds. My shell alone should be around sixty. If he's strong enough to lift me I doubt I can make him let me up. No matter how much I want him too. I sigh, guess I really am stuck here until he let's me up.

"Mbcpwleeb," Rat's here. I guess that's where Orange ran off to. I was wondering where he went so quickly. Orange is standing behind Rat and he's looking stricken. I hope he's not blaming himself for me collapsing. I'm going to have my hands full keeping Blue and Red from guilt tripping off this little episode that I don't need Orange freaking too. One of Rat's old wizened hands stroke over my brow, it rests as if he's taking my temperature. I don't think I'm running a fever. At least not anymore. "Ypaiple, wilyl hx cb ylpxbc wb ibem rbvy oybwily mbtc."

"Ovw Xlcxlh-" I wonder what he did now? Rat must've been telling him off or something. Reluctantly Red's hand eases off my chest. Yes! Freedom! I don't jump off the couch like I want to because Rat's hand is still lightly resting on my forehead. It's… comforting. I stay still watching him as he gives me a gentle smile that seems to light up his whole face. He looks… proud? I wonder if Rat has any children. I have a feeling he would be a great father.

"Ypaiple," oh Rat sounds like he's getting ready to lecture him. I wonder what Red did? Is Rat upset that he was holding me down? "Lulc thwi ihx dldbyr dhxxhcj, tbv'yl oybwily hx xwhee p ihjier xfheelm chcgp. Hk tl tpcw wb flla ihd ilyl tl dvxw mb xb or xibthcj tl npyl pobvw ihd pcm cbw or kbynl ihd wb mb pcrwihcj pjphcxw ihx thxilx. Tl tpcw ihd wb sll vx px peehlx cbw lcldhlx." Rat looks at the other three turtles standing nearby. Since when did Blue join us anyways? And where has he been? "Tl cllm wb jphc ihx wyvxw px hk il tpx cluly p apyw bk wihx kpdher. Wihx hx aylnhxler wil spdl ylpxbc H wbem rbv wb elpul ihd ol hc wil opwiybbd epxw chjiw. Tl ipul wb elw Mbcpwleeb vcmlyxwpcm wipw tl pyl cbw ilyl px lcldhlx ovw px ihx peehlx. Ihx kthlcmx. Ihx kpdher."

I wonder why the three of them are acting sheepish now. I wonder what Rat said to them. Judging by the slightly guilty looks I'm receiving from the other three turtles it has something to do with me. I wonder what happened. Are they upset because I collapsed? I should tell Orange that this is normal when I remember something. How the shell I'm I suppose to say that this is normal? I guess I could just tell him that I' okay or something. That should work. I snap my fingers to draw Orange's attention. I should really teach him how I say Orange so I don't have to keep snapping my fingers at him. It's kind of demeaning, like I'm trying to get a dog's attention or something. When he looks at me I give him the classic 'okay' hand sign. It kind of loses something when you only have two fingers and a thumb but judging by his weak smile his gets the message.

He returns the sign to me and says, "Il'x xprhcj il'x bfpr."

"Gvxw ehfl Mbc wb wyr cbw wb dpkl vx tbyyr pobvw ihd," Blue says giving me a soft smile.

"hk il mblxc'w tpcw vx wb tbyyr il'x mbhcj p abby gbo bk hw," judging by his tone of voice, Red's still mad. Jeez, is he ever happy? Is he ever anything other then mad and angry? I doubt that. If he was anything other then mad or angry I would be checking to see if he was sick or someone had cloned him. Red is suppose to always be angry.

"Ypai! Wipw'x lcbvji," Now why is Blue ticked off. He's upset over whatever Red said. Uh oh, that's the same look Red gave Blue last night right before he tried to punch Blue. I start to scramble off the couch. I need to stop them before they hurt each other.

"Elbcpymb! Ypaiple!" I shy away from Rat slightly. He's pissed. I'm so glad I'm not the one he's mad at. I'm actually feeling sorry for Rd and Blue. I wonder if he's going to bite one of them. That's what rats usually do when they are mad. "Wlc kehax! Cbt!"

They look away from each other and bow to the rat before moving off towards the half pipe. Both are mumbling under their breaths and giving each other dirty looks as they stand next to each other. I still want to know why there is a half pipe sitting over there but, like the mystery of the rubber chicken on the table, it's not going to be solved until I can figure out a way to properly communicate with these mutants.

Woah! At the same time both Blue and Red do a pair of standing back flips, landing with near silent thumps and saying, "Bcl" whatever that means. Another flip and this time they say a new word, "Wtb." Maybe they're counting or something. If I knew what language they were speaking it might be possible for me to translate what they are saying. Hmmm… Oh, Shell! I know I know several languages but I can't remember how to say or read anything in them. I can't even remember which ones they are. CRUD! I huff and let my head fall into my hands. This is getting old really fast.

Huh? What was that noise? I lift my head up as I hear a faint thump and then a sliding noise. Looking around I notice Orange looking away from Red and Blue and up towards the balcony. "'Dbychcj Payhe! Ihrp Npxlr!" he shouts out with a small wave of his hand. Man and Lady are hurrying down the staircase. Why are they here? Did Blue call them? Is that where he went when Red was carrying me?

Lady is carrying a messenger bag which she drops behind the couch somewhere before coming around in front of me. "Wibxl wtb pyl pw hw peylpmr? Hw'x cbw lulc lhjiw rlw." Man says as he comes up behind the couch. They're surrounding me. Okay, take a deep breath. Don't act unless they act you first. All they have done so far is cutting off my escape routes… okay, that didn't help any.

Rat must've noticed my reaction because he laid a gentle paw on my arm. "Ol pw lpxl, Mbcpwleeb, wilr thee cbw ipyd rbv. Dy. Gbclx, aelpxl nbdl pybvcm wil nbvni. Tl mbc'w tpcw ihd wb klle wypaalm." Man seems to jump slightly mumbles something under his breath and then walks around the couch to stand next to Lady who seems to be waiting for something. I look back and forth between them. Okay, now what?

A pair of fingers snapping catches my attention. I really don't want to look away from these two. What if Lady pulls another needle on me? I might not be able to react in time to stop her from sticking me with it. The fingers snap again. "Not a good time, Orange," I mumble but risk a quick glance at him. "Make it fast, okay?" I mumble looking into his eyes.

He smiles and gives me a wink as if he knows what I'm thinking. He points to himself, at his eyes, to me and raps his shell with his knuckles. He then points at the two humans, gives me an 'okay' sign with his hand, points to his eyes and then down to his belt. His stick thingies are there. Good. Seeing his weapons and knowing his watching my back makes me relax slightly on the couch. I've seen him take out three Black Men in less then a minute with those things. Surely he can take out these two as well.

I sit back against the couch as Orange tells Lady, "Jb pilpm. Il wihcfx H'd dpfhcj xvyl rbv mbc'w wyr pcrwihcj." Lady looks hurt for a brief moment before kneeling in front of me and proceeding to check me over much like she had done the previous night. Man stepped back and perched on the edge of the recliner. Why's he doing that? Judging by how he's watching me and Lady, he's guarding her much like Orange is guarding me. Maybe he's worried I'll shove her over the coffee table again.

"Il xlldx khcl," she says after another moment of looking me over. "Il gvxw xlldx p ehwwel wlcxl pcm pccbrlm. Bwily wilc wipw il'x alyklnwer ilpewir kby p jhpcw wvywel thwi pdclxhp."

"Ovw il nbeepaxlm," Blue said as he and Red rejoined the group. Guess they are done doing their punishment. "Wilyl hx xbdlwihcj ulyr tybcj thwi ihd, Payhe. Olxhmlx kybd wil tibel pdclxhp wihcj."

I kind of tune out the rest of the conversation, as far as I can tell they are talking about my little falling episode. I wonder why they are babying me so much. I know I'm sick but it's like they always know where I am and what I'm doing. It's kind of intimidating to know that there are six people… erm… people and mutants who know what you're doing and where you are every minute. Since everyone seems pretty involved in the conversation of my flashback I guess I can go get my last cup of coffee.

I shift over enough so I won't knock over anyone when I stand. Rat's paw slips of my arm. I'm surprised he didn't try to hold me back. I can practically feel everyone's eyes on me as I head for the kitchen. What's with them? They're acting like I could drop dead or vanish in a second. "H'ee flla pc lrl bc ihd," I hear Orange say to the group and then his feet padding across the concrete floor behind me. What? Now I need a babysitter?

I roll my eyes as I grab the coffee pot and head towards the microwave. I can't believe I'm about to microwave my coffee. Next to instant coffee the worst thing you can do coffee is microwave it. I take down another mug and pour the rest of the pot into a new mug. I probably should go clean up my mess. I'll do that after my cup of coffee. I set the mug in the microwave and the look over the coffee machine sitting innocently on the counter. On the other hand I could just make a whole new pot. The filters are kept in the cupboard above them and there's coffee in there as well.

I walk over, rising and filling the pot before turning to the machine. A whole pot of coffee all to myself. It's like a dream come true. I guess I have a horrible coffee addiction. I wonder how much of this stuff I drink in a given day. I'm reaching into the cupboard to pull down the filters when a hand grabs my wrist. Who is… oh, it's Orange. He looks disapproving and shakes his head no before closing the cupboard.

I guess I really am cut off.

I sigh and turn back to the microwave hitting buttons without even looking at the number pad. This is going to taste so nasty. I'm going to have to put close to a pound of sugar in this thing to make it semi palatable. As the machine hums I find myself looking at Orange as he watches me watch him. He has that happy go lucky air about him but his eyes look sad. I frown, he seemed fine this morning. Is he really that upset about me collapsing? I guess there is only one way to find out.

Since he's already watching me, I don't bother sapping my fingers. I point to him then to myself, drawing a frown on my face with the tip of my finger and look at him expectantly. He smiles at me but it's so forced that you can practically see him paint it on his own face. I shake my head 'no', draw the frown again and point at him.

He deflates and looks away from me rubbing the back of his neck, muttering, "H cluly nbvem ihml pcrwihcj kybd rbv." He looks back at me with a resigned air about himself. You may have won the battle over the coffee but the war is far from over. He points at his frown sigh and then points at me. Why is he sad about me? Did I do something wrong? I guess he must've realized what I thought he meant because he starts shaking his head 'no'. I wonder if he's going to give himself whiplash. I didn't realize someone could shake their head that fast.

I points to me -actually to my head- draws a large question mark in the air with his finger and holds his head, wincing like he was in pain. Oh, he's upset over what's been done to me. I can relate to that. The microwave beeps and I pull out the now steaming mug. I go about making my coffee. About seven teaspoons of sugar should help the coffee taste alright. I wonder if he knows what happened to me.

I point to him, then his head, I look confused and then point back to me. Great, now he's looking confused. Alright, I'll try again. I point to him, his head, shrug my shoulders and look confused then point to my head and then I draw a question mark in the air. Orange looks thoughtful for a moment then shakes his head no. Oh well, it was worth a shot. Orange points to his head, puts his hand up to his forehead and peers around the room as if looking for something before pointing to me.

It's nice to know that they had been actively looking for me. I must be important enough to them that they realized I was missing. That's a comforting thought. I'm needed and missed. I smile at him but instead of looking happy himself he looks even sadder. Oh great, is he having a guilt trip too? I leave my coffee on the table and walk over to him putting my hand on his shoulder. He looks at me timidly and I give his shoulder a tight squeeze. Hopefully this will give him a little encouragement that there is no reason to blame himself for what happened to me. After all he and the other mutants did come looking for me and the saved me from the Black Men. I wonder how long they were looking for me anyways. I take my hand from his shoulder and hold them at varying lengths apart from each other in front of me then I point to the clock and spin my finger around it a few times.

He frowns as if he's considering something before looking around the kitchen for something. I wonder what he's looking for now. He takes my wrist and pulls me over to the refrigerator. He does that hand-to-forehead-looking thing then he points to me then to the calendar, pointing to the days they been… oh shell… shell… eight days? They were looking for me for eight days? No wonder they panic every time I breathe wrong. If they cared even half as much as they do now back then they must have been freaking out. And that's putting it mildly.

"Tl ebbflm lvlyrwilyl kby rbv, Mbc," Orange's voice is so quiet I almost don't hear the whispered words as they flow out of his mouth. "Ovw hw tpx ehfl rbv gvxw upchxilm. Cb dpwwly tipw xlpyni apwwlyc Elb wyhlm tl nbcemc'w khcm p wypnl bk rbv. Lulc wibvji Ypai tlcw bc p ypdapjl pcm wlyybyhqlm lulyr Avyael Mypjbc il nbvem khcm wilyl tpx cbwihcj. H wibvjiw… tl pee tlyl oljhcchcj wb wihcf…" Is he going to start crying? He certainly sounds lik-.

Aww… Shell.

He's crying. He's trying not to. I can tell by the way his breathing is beginning to hitch slightly and tears are slowly beginning to trickle out of his eyes. He wipes his arm across his face and sniffles slightly. I can't stand to see him like this. It's just so wrong. Orange is always happy, no matter what's happened. He never cries.

"Come here," I say as I pull him into a gentle hug. Last night a hug did wonders for me. Hopefully this will help Orange with what ever he's dealing with. He clings to me like I'm about to disappear and buries his face into my chest, tucking his head underneath my chin. He's holding onto me so tight that my ribs are starting to hurt again but I would let him suffocate me just to make him feel better. I tighten my hold on him and on a whim just start whispering, "It's okay. I'm here. It's going to be okay. I promise. Just relax, I'm right here."

I'm not sure how long we just stood there but it had to be for a good twenty minutes or so. When Orange finally pulled away his eyes were very red and he voice seemed scratchy when he mumbled, "Wipcfx Mbcchl. Xbyyr, H jbw xcbw pee buly rbvy nilxw," his hand waved at my chest and I glance down to- oh gross. There's snot all over my chest. Thanks, Orange. I needed this. I take a paper towel and wet it in the sink to clean the filth of my chest. I know he needed that hug but did he have to leave almost sixty percent of his bodily fluids on me?

After I'm done cleaning myself up I move out of the way so Orange can wash his face free of tear tracks. I wonder if my coffee is still any good. I head back over to the table and pick it up. Nope, bone cold again. There is no way I'm reheating it again. I move to take it back to the sink when something catches my eye. I need to make Orange laugh. That will help him to unwind a bit more and relax. I set down my mug and reach for the article in question, snapping my fingers at the same time to catch his attention. He pulls the towel away from his face and looks at me.

The rubber chicken is dangling from my fingers as if it's the last thing I ever want to touch and I'm giving him an annoyed look with one of my eye ridges raised. He looks at me then the chicken then finally back at me before giving me this oversized grin that basically screams, 'I'm innocent don't hurt me!' We stare at each other for a moment longer before we both bust out laughing. Shell, he's such a goofball!

As we're both standing there trying not to laugh hard enough that we lose our breakfast, Blue walks in. He just shakes his head at us and gives us a moment to compose ourselves with a fond smile on his face. "Dpxwly Xaehcwly tpcwx wb ipul Mbc tpwni vx aypnwhnl," he tells Orange who is wiping tears of mirth from his eyes. "Il'x ibahcj hw thee gbj ihx dldbyr." Orange nods and then gestures for me to follow before following Blue himself. I wait until he's past me until I smack him in the back of the thighs with the rubber chicken.

He jumps and howls funny too.


	10. Chapter 10: Ninjitsu

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_O.O… 100 reviews… Over 100 reviews… I'm speechless… Great now my ego is getting so big that it's forcing me out of my living room. Seriously though, thanks for the reviews everyone. Sniff This is the best day of my life sniff._

_I was kind of hoping __people wouldn't start swapping around the code but since I never told anyone not to do it I guess I can't lay the blame on anyone but myself. _Amberli Raven_ posted the translation for chapter two on the review board and _Quoth the Raven_ has offered to send the translations out as well. You really don't need the translations to know what they are saying. Don makes a pretty actuate guess about what was said shortly after hearing it so if you don't want to translate it you don't have too. _

_And yes, Storm Princess, Raph and Don have a special scene coming up in a couple of chapters. _

_Sorry about the delay for this chapter (I wanted to get it out Wednesday) but it's long and I think it's well worth the wait. Let me know what you think. ;)_

Chapter Ten: Ninjitsu

As I follow Blue across the main room towards a hallway near the half pipe it occurs to me that I'm in big trouble. Orange has a tendency of getting back at people with pranks and I really don't want to be on the end of one of his pranks. I don't know why. I mean they really can't be that bad, they're just pranks. That feeling of impeding doom won't go away and I find myself sidestepping away from Orange as he walks down the short corridor. I wonder where everyone else is. I don't remember seeing them in the ma-

Wow, talk about a rumpus room.

It has a large vaulted ceiling that almost looks like a large dome. The entire upper area is crisscross with rope, pipes and wooden beams all spaced at intervals that are short enough to jump between them. It's like a giant jungle gym higher then the recommended safety standers. I notice the difference in the floors as I step of the concrete in the hall and onto the padded stuff that makes up the room's floor. It's firm but has just the slightest amount of give to it and feels like a hand woven rug on the bottom of my feet. Along the walls of the room are racks and racks of weapons that seem vaguely familiar but I can't quite place them. I know they all come from Japan, Korea and parts of northern China but other then that I'm drawing a complete blank on them. Most of them don't look to friendly with all those sharp points and blad- Hey, those things over their look just like my pole except a little longer and those below it are way to short. They also have a pair of handles near the one end. Weird. Whoa, that's one shell of a weight set. This must be where Red and Man work out. Who else could lift a one hundred seventy-five pound dum-

Why is everyone staring at me?

I hadn't realized but as I looked about the room I had also been walking around it looking at the various objects up close or as close as I could get in the way of the ceiling. I don't think I'm ready to jump up there and start jumping around. The floor may be padded but a fall from that height could still hurt. Just the thought of a fall from that height make my ribs hurt and I don't want to think of the damage that could be done to my already abused wrist. That reminds me, I'm going to have to take a closer look at my wrist to see what kind of damage I did to it. If I ever get into another fight with Red –or anyone for that matter- I'm going to stay away from the walls. Particularly brick ones.

Orange and Blue must have walked into the room and joined the other two mutants and humans standing in the middle of the matted floor while I wandered about. They all seem kind of amused and a little sad about what I have been doing. Was I not supposed to be looking around? Should I have followed Blue and Orange over to the group first? Yeah, it's not very polite to be wandering about someone's home without their permission. I force myself to drop the deer-in-the-headlights look and go over to them. "Umm…Sorry about that," I mumble sheepishly as I join the group.

Orange throws an arm over my shoulders and punches me lightly in the shoulder. "Mbc'w fcbt tipw rbv gvxw xphm ovw rbv npc nilly va pcrwhdl cbt," he said.

"Elbcpymb, Ypaiale, Dhnilepcjleb. H wihcf hw tbvem ol olwwly hk rbv wiyll aypnwhnlm pcm Mbcpwleeb gvxw tpwnilx." It's fast, but I know Rat glances at the bindings around my chest and then my wrist. Is he worried about my injuries or something? "H mb cbw tpcw ihd wb ivyw ihdxlek kvywily."

"Jbwwnip, Xlcxlh," Orange says giving him a thumbs up. He pulls me back towards the door where he gestures for me to sit down on a bench. After I do he points at me then his eyes and then the rest of the mutants. He wants me to watch them. Okay, I can do that. I nod my head to let him know I understood him.

Hey what's th- oh, Man and Lady have just sat down on the bench next to me. Actually it's more like near me. Man is on the far side of Lady and she's a good arm distance away from me. It makes me feel a little better that they are a little ways away from me but it would be even better if they were on the other side of the room. Actually, no that wouldn't make me feel any better, I'm pretty sure that half of the weapons on that wall across from me can be thrown. Orange seems to sense my unease because he points to himself, his eyes, to the two humans, and then to the weapons he keeps tucked in his belt. He then winks and gives me a thumbs up before turning around and heading to the middle of the room where the other mutants are standing.

I watch as the three turtles line up in front of Rat and bow to him. Rat bows back and rises saying something in a low voice that I can barely make out. The three turtles rise then and take a combat stance. The three then begin to go through a series of moves that are linked together. Upper block, snap kick, back fist strike, spin around for the roundhouse kick before dropping low and performing a sweep kick. Kata. This is called a kata. I wonder what sty- they're using several styles of martial arts. A mixture of styles that when combined form a special kind of martial art. What was that called? It wasn't all just about fighting… it had to do with sneakiness… stealth… Of course! It's called Ninjitsu! Is that how I knew how to fight? The moves are so very familiar, I think I did lea-

_-No… No… No again… Nope… Nah… No way in shell I'm putting that in the bike! Nada in this pile, onto the next one._

_I turn away from the pile I was just rooting through to walk down the row to the next one in the line. I hitched my duffle up higher on my shoulder as I looked around the junkyard. I have no need to be skittish. It's not like we have monsters running all over the city still and even though the Foot is back they don't have half the strength that they use to. When we were fighting them out in front of Winter's building they were going down way to ease to be fully fledged Foot ninja. I think Karai brough in all the ninjas she had for that fight and most of them were still in training. The only ones foolish enough to mess with me is the local thugs and maybe some Purple Dragons but that last one is highly unlikely. I'm way outside of the Dragons' territory. If I had been going to the other junkyard I would have brought someone with me to stand guard._

_That, of course, leads to reason I am out here rummaging through the junk alone tonight. It had been one of __**those**__ days. It started off fine. I had my coffee went into the workshop, was able to finish fixing the waffle iron and made several modifications to the water heating system that would hopefully hold more hot water so we weren't running out half the time. I wish the city had a hot water line sometimes so we wouldn't always have to wait for the water heater but that would be next to impossible and I doubt that plan would be very cost effective. Anyways, when I came out for lunch everyone was at each others throats. I didn't pay attention to the argument. Once I was done I could go back to the workshop and let them cool down. But they tried to drag me into it and pick sides on who was right and who was wrong. I refused to choose a side since I'm still not sure what happened and they got mad at me for not choosing. That in turn ticked me off and we ended up fighting before all heading our separate ways with stomping feet and slamming doors._

_I sigh as I beginning picking through the pieces of junk in the next pile. Then I just had to go and realize I didn't have the right kind of fuel injector for the new bike so that meant a trip topside. I gathered together my gear and was about to ask if anyone would like to go but figured they were all still in a bad mood so I had just slipped out the door. Kind of wish I had brought someone now, if I had hair on the back of my neck it would be standing on end. At least I know Le-_

_Wait. What was that?_

_I tilt the damaged beyond all hope starter relay as if I'm still looking it over while really using it to scan the area behind me. I know I saw one of the shadows move and in this town moving shadows are always a bad thing. Hopefully, I know this person and they ar-_

_What on earth are those Foot ninjas doing? They need to go back to ninja school because they are seriously failing in the whole 'hiding in the all concealing shadows'. They're right out in the open and they keep moving around like they want to attack me but don't dare. Geez, they need to take a little backbone or something. I wonder why they are here. Are they out training and just happened by this junkyard thinking it's a good place to practice in? As long as they don't attack me I'll let them go. I don't see the need to thrash a bunch of beginners again. Besides, even if I did beat them into the ground they would still know I come to this junkyard so I'll have to have 'company' form now on when I come here too. I'm never going to be able to go to any of the junkyards alone after this again. _

_Well, it looks like at least one of th- no, make that all of them have decided they really do want to go around with this turtle after all. They're hurrying as low as they can to the ground with their swords drawn. Heh, amateurs. While they can move fast like that they are not being very quiet. I would have heard them even if I hadn't seen one in the relay. Acting as nonchalantly as possible I bend towards the pile a bit more picking up what looks like part of a frame. Judging by the way the metal is warped and twisted whatever it was a part of was in a nasty accident. Ouch. Still the piece just fits in the palm of my hand and its heavy which means it will be the perfect projectile. _

_I wait until the leader is almost on top of me before snapping the heel of my right foot catching him in the chin with him while I turn. Out like a light, that ninja has a jaw made out of glass. As I turn I take the time to aim and then throw the hunk of metal right at the head of another ninja. Strike two. My duffle bag has swung onto my wrist during the first kick and catches one ninja in the stomach doubling him over and puts his head at the right level for me to kick with the same foot that took out his friend. Strike three. Hhmm, at this right I'm not even going to need my bo. Maybe now the other three will just leave and I ca-_

_Nope, no such luck. They are still coming after me albeit more cautiously then their companions. I spin with the momentum of my duffle -I have already nearly stuffed it full with electronics so it's heavy- trying to make it look like I'm helplessly overbalance and a sitting duck. Yeah, someone really needs to re-teach these guys how to fight with a ninja turtle. I can't believe they are actually falling for this. The bag comes around first and the one ninja steps backwards out of the way avoiding it and stepping right into a palm strike. I can tell by the way his head snaps back that he's going to have a very sore neck when he wakes up. One of the other ninjas looses his sword when the bag crashes into his hand. I quick jerk on the strap and the bag spins upward. I then pull down on the strap and it slams right onto the top of his head. The other ninja has taken this opportunity to attack but his sword sweep is too high. It's one of those overly dramatic finishing blows that they show on television all the time and utterly useless in actually combat. _

_I catch the blade between my hands and hear the ninja gasp right before he gets clocked in the side of the head with my bag. I love being a turtle. The bag was able to spin right over my head completely. As the finally ninja falls to the ground I look down at the six of them. They got to be young, probably only teenagers. I sigh as I step away from them hoping that this little encounter will teach them to wise up and leave the Foot. I'm kind of glad I came alone. If anyone else came with me those kids would probably be unable to wal-_

_Shell._

_I have a sneaking suspicion that I'm being ambushed. Either that or this junkyard is actually the Foot's new training ground. Ten more Foot ninja are perched at various heights on several of the piles all facing me with their drawn katanas. Oh joy. I doubt they're just going to let me walk away after thrashing their friends. I reach back over my shoulder and pull my bo out of the back part of my belt. I twirl it lazily in my fingers. Hopefully they'll get the hint and just back off before they two are nothing but logs like their friends._

_Turtle luck is working true to form tonight. Instead of taking the obvious hint to back off, the ninjas jump from their perches and charge me. Idiots. I flip the staff over the back of my hand once more before putting it across my chest clutched lightly in both hands. I shift my left foot forward slightly and balance the majority of my weight on it. If these guys think I'm a push over they're about to learn a very painful lesson. _

_I side step the first ninja and smack the second ninja in the side of the head with my bo. I hit with just enough force to knock him out and not shatter his skull. Even thought they are the enemy they don't deserve to die. I ram the tip of the staff forward catching a third ninja in the chin before thrusting it backwards and catching the first ninja right below his sternum as he tries to sneak up on me. I pitch his dead weight forward over my shoulder as I duck down to avoid a blade sending him careening into the ninja that was trying to give me an unneeded hair cut. _

_I fall into a short roll before flattening my body out and coming into a backwards hand spring. I'm not surprised when my feet connect with a Foot ninja. It's not always a good idea to try and hit and opponent when he's down. I land on my feet and bring my bo up blocking the two incoming strikes before they can actually hit me. This group of ninjas seems to be slightly more experienced then the first group. I twist myself to the left -sending the swords that way- and strike my bo into the ground. Using it like a fulcrum I flip myself over it kicking the two ninjas twice each as my feet catch up with the rest of my body. I don't even bother looking at them again. They're not going to be getting up anytime soon. _

_I come out of my side flip facing back to the remaining ninjas and, predictably, one takes the bait and lunges forward. I spin on my heels, holding my bo like a major league slug and strike a homerun against the gullible ninja's ribs. He's going to feel that in the morning. I block another sword strike –this time coming in horizontally aimed for my side- before lashing back at him with the end of my bo catching him in the shoulder. He hiss and steps back as his friends comes in and takes over. This one seems to be intent on ramming his sword through my shoulder judging by the way he's holding his katana like it was a spear. He should learn to mind his surroundings. A swift snap kick to the jaw sends him right over backwards to land on his back rather hard. Ow. I almost feel sorry for him. _

_Whoa! I duck the hit before I even realize he was trying to punch me. I guess Mr. Broken Shoulder Ninja just didn't want to stay down. He's dropped the blade and had lashed out at me with his fist. Probably wouldn't be able to keep his balance if he tried to wield that sword one handed and prevent his injured arm from getting in the way. He attempts a high side kick at my head that I easily catch. I clutch his ankle for a moment and give him a smile before shoving his leg high above his head. He lands shoulders first on the ground and I can tell by the way he has flopped over that he's done for the night. Now where's the las- I step off to the side and a startled ninja stumbles past me. He really should have just stayed under his buddy and faked unconsciousness. I poke him lightly in the back of the skull with the tip of my bo before he can turn around. Now he'll be out for the rest of the night._

_Speaking of rest for the rest for the night, it's high time I got out of here. I don't know why there are so many Foot ninjas in this junkyard tonight and I really don't think I should stick around much longer. Someone is going to notice that sixteen ninjas are missing at one point and I rather be at the lair then here when that happens. I guess I could call in backup. All I would have to do is mention the Foot and I would have enough back up to take out a small army in a matter of minutes. Hmmm, it's tempting. If the Foot are becoming active again –even if it's only for training- then we should find out what's going on. Karai's cryptic message after the Winter's fiasco is enough of a reason to investigate any possible Foot activity. And once he finds out that they attacked me, I'm sure Rap-_

_Ummm… Yeah, I think I'm being ambushed._

"_Shell," I hiss under my breath as I bring my bo back up to hold at chest level again in both hands. I clench the bo tightly as I glance about trying to gauge how many Foot ninjas there are and if I have any chance of making a break for the rooftops. I could lose them easily up there in the shadows and then make my way into the sewers at my leisure. I grit my teeth, no such luck. Those first two waves were probably to tire me out. I don't know how many ninjas are here I can see at least twenty and I can sense an additional fifteen. I'm going to be pessimistic and assume that there are actually more hiding in the shadows then those I can sense. Definitely time to call in the reserves. I should be able to hold my own until they get here. Hopefully they aren't fighting loud enough to not hear their shell cells. That could be a problem. I shift so that it looks ike I'm getting into a fighting stance while I reach into my belt and pull the phone out of the little pouch I designed for it. Now I just have to ge-_

_I feel the phone jerk in my hand twice. Please let those not be what I thin- Shell, they were waiting for me to pull out my shell cell. I look down at the two shurikens sticking out of the casing. There's no way I'm going to be able to make a call on that and it looks like one of the shurikens pierced the panic system. Crud, I'm effectively without any form of communication with one bad fight on my hands. Guess I'm going to have to try and find an opening and make a break for it after all. I feel the Foot ninjas begin to advance rather then hear them. Shell, these are fully fledged Foot ninjas rather then students. _

_The cell still has one use to me and I throw it as hard as I can at one of the closer ninjas. He easily deflects it with his sword. I barely register that as I turn to block an incoming strike. I step backwards to avoid another strike just to receive a flying kick to he chest. Ow. I roll backwards with the hit until I can get to my feet underneath me again. I stand up and twirl my bo above my head. Okay, if I can get over to that pile I can dislodge that car frame enough to start a pile slide. Hopefully that will distract the ninjas enough for me to be able to sneak away. All I have to do is get through about thirty ninjas to do it._

_I catch the spinning bo in both hands swinging it down and strike a ninja in the side of the neck. I flip it back over the top of my hand catching a blade and kneeing its owner hard in the gut. I spin the bo back over my head and hit another ninja full force in the arm with it. I can the subdued crack from here and he bends down, dropping his sword and clutching his arm. That was nice of him. Using him like stepping board I jump over a group of ninjas, roll a few feet to lessen the impact and then use my bo like a pole vault to jump over another group of ninjas. _

_I land on both feet, holding my bo across the back of my shell, and spin around quickly taking several foot ninjas in the back of the knees making them fall over. I jump up, take several running steps, and flip over my bo between two ninjas with the ends of the bo catching them in the stomach. I land on my two feet ducking under a sword blocking another. I hit one ninja across the chest and dodge the blade of the second ninja again. Driving the bo like a spear into the side of his knee he goes down with an addible gasp. I don't think I have ever heard a ninja cry out before but I've also never broke a ninjas knee before. _

_I don't bother thinking about it too much. I still have more ninjas then I can count around me and they aren't giving me much time to think about the little details. I'm not that much of an action guy. I can hold my own in a fight but I can feel my breaths coming out in harsh pants. It's not going to be long before I'll collapse from exhaustion. I'm going to have to get out of here fast and hope I can get down into the sewers. The Foot ninjas don't know those tunnels even half as well as I do. It'll be child's play to lose them down there. _

_I dodge another sword coming in from the side which puts me in the path of another blade that I'm barely able to dodge in time. Shell, they're trying to crowd me. A bo staff is hard to maneuver in close combat. The whole point of fighting with a bo is to keep an opponent away from you. I block a blade and feel another just barely skim past my shoulder. It cuts through my duffel's strap and it begins to fall away. I might as well use that to my advantage, besides without the extra weight hanging off my shoulder might be enough to give me a little more energy to get the shell out of here. Grabbing part of the strap I swing the heavy bag around me knocking ninjas down and out of its path before letting it go. It goes sailing into a pair of ninjas running over to help their comrades. There's something to be said for centrifugal forces and inertia. _

_I running for the pile I had seen earlier. Now that there weren't any ninjas between me and it this should be a breeze. Several Foot ninjas are standing up on top of pile but they won't be there much longer. They're on the way down the side, probably think I'm going to try and head up and over the pile. Now I have to hit the frame on the upper beam and the best way I'm going to manage the force needed is with a solid kick. I jump up in a perfect flying kick. I'll have to move fast to get out of the way. If I can duck under the frame I'll be buried but they'll think I'm done for and leave. Hopefully. I rather avo-_

_SHELL! A Foot ninja pops out of nowhere and catches my leg before I fly past him. He twists, pulling on my leg and I find myself swing around. There are times I hate physics. He let's go and I go sailing through the air to land hard in a graceless roll. Crud, that was emb- Ooofff! Aacckk! Uuhhnn! Eerk! Hunf! What the shell is this?! Pig pile on the downed turtle or something?! I struggle wildly trying to keep the fiv -Chunf- six ninjas from fully pinning me down. I'm not the best fighter -shell, I'm probably the worst out of the four of us- and grappling has never been an easy thing for me to work on. I just don't have the required muscle mass to help me over power my opponents. It's why I always try to not end up in this position. Of course it would be a shell of a lot easier if I hadn't landed on my stomach. _

_Someone knocks my bo out of my hand shortly after jumping on me. It's not I could wield it buried under six Foot ninjas. At least they seem to be having a hard time keeping me down. I grunt as I thrash. I have to get to my feet or at least over on my shell. I can't fight back that well pinned on my stomach. My arms can bend backwards enough to force the ninjas off me. If anything it'll just make it easier to pin me. _

_That seems to be what they are trying to do in the very least. While four of the ninjas seem content to sit on my legs and shell two have been trying to grab hold of my arms. It's all I can do to keep them from their goal. Several more pair of hands joins the battle and I find myself loosing. Crud. They got me. My hands are forced back onto my shell and someone has nicely put their knee on the back of my neck forcing me face first into the dirt. I hear the ripping sound of duct tape as it's pulled from the roll. Great, I'm being turtlenapped. They wind the tape around my wrists and hands more then actually needed. I guess they don't want me getting free or something. Hands grab at my arms and legs before I'm hoisted into the air suspended between them. _

_I wouldn't be able to fight that well if I did get them to let me go. With my hands bound I would have to resort to dodging and kicks and there's no way I'm getting a manhole open without my hands. Even though I know I would be caught again and they would probably knocked me out, I struggle to free myself. I twist, thrash, kick, and are generally be a pain in their necks as the Foot ninjas struggle to carry me through the junkyard. I don't bother calling for help, no one ever comes to that anyways, and there s no one here that would here me. A homeless person might hear me but no one that could help me would hear me. Crud, where are they taking me?_

_Oh a van. How quaint. I am being turtlenapped. I'm half thrown half dropped into the back of the van before I become a couch for several ninjas again. I feel something sharp press against the back of my neck briefly before it's pulled away. The warning is clear. Try anything funny and I'll end up with a tanto through my spine. Not a pleasant thought. I'll play along for now. As long as I'm alive there's always a chance to escape. _

_I pay attention to the van as it moves using the street lights to gauge how far we travel down any given street. It pays to memorize the city map. We travel for awhile and I find my thoughts drifting not only to what the Foot are going to do to me but also my family. I know I can spend hours in the junkyard but they usually call every half hour or so to make sure I'm alright. With everyone so mad at each other I doubt that they even thought about calling me. They might not have even realized I left. Crud._

_The van slows and pulls into an old office building with a garage in its basement if I remember right. We're right on Westminster Street about two blocks form that neat old church with the gargoyles on the roof. The van doors are pulled open and I'm dragging fighting from the van. They are so not going to have an easy time with me. There's a hospital gurney near the back of the van with enough straps on it to hold down the most uncooperative of patients or one very uncooperative turtle. I'm forced onto it and the ninjas lash my legs down tightly. I'm going to lose all the feelings in my feet soon. I doubt they are going to loosen the straps anytime soon either. Something suddenly cuts my hands free and I'm able to punch a ninja before I'm forced backwards and strapped down. _

_At least now I understand the reason for the gurney. The Foot don't have to carry me around or fight with me anymore. I can barely move let alone struggle. I'm rolled into an elevator. Shell, all we need is some cheesy elevator music to bore us to tears. Where are they taking me anyways? If they're hoping to interrogate me they've come to the wrong turtle. I won't tell them anything of value. I won't tell them anything at all. I might tell them where to shove it if they're lucky. _

_The elevator comes to a stop and I'm rolled down a short hallway and into a room. Actually, a lab. Shell. I twist my hands and wrists about in the bindings hoping to feel some kind of give. Nothing. Crud. I don't think the ninjas want any kind of information from me. Judging by the genome analysis equipment and the plethora of surgical tools on that tray, the Foot are going to dissect me. It figures that I would go out due to experimentation. I'm sure there's some kind of karmic justice here but I'm too scared to give it much thought. _

_The ninjas leave me and I find myself alone in the room which just makes me struggle harder. I've got to get out of here! A pair of voices drift towards my and I slow my struggles enough so I can focus on their voices. Foot ninjas don't often talk so if you do hear talking when you're around them you tend to listen. It's usually something important said by someone who is important. "- s requested, Dr. Saka."_

"_Good, from what I've hear about him the purple banded creature is the best candidate for this experiment."_

"_Indeed."_

"_If this works it'll be a breakthrough in medical science and it will get rid of your reptilian problem. Just make sure Mis-"_

"_You have nothing to fear. Mistress Karai has no knowledge of our little project. Only after this test is complete will she be info-_

I blink staring down at the mats beneath my feet. A pair of arms are preventing me from sliding off the bench anymore then I already have. Voices are flying about the room helping to distort me even more. What happened? Oh yeah, I had another memory. This one was of my capture and being taken to that lab. I wish the voices would tone it down a notch. They're just making my headache even worst. The turtles sound kind of panicky, I should show them that I'm al- Wait, if they are over there then whose holding me…

SHELL!

I lash out, kicking myself backwards in an attempt to dislodge Man's arms from around me. He says something but I'm more intent on making him let me go then to whatever he's saying. Lady is scrambling backwards, trying to get away from the wrestling match that Man and I are in. Instead of having one arm around me like he had originally he has both arms around me trying to hold me still. I'm not going down again and these Foot ninjas are not taking me back to the lab.

Blue's voice suddenly raises above the other frantic voices, "-lw ihd jb! Npxlr, gvxw elw ihd jb!"

Just like that Man's arms open and I jump away. I quickly turn back towards him, my hands up and ready just incase he's trying to catch me again. He just stands there, his hands up in the classic 'I surrender' pose. I wonder what Blue said to get him to let go of me like that. I don't even get a chance to think about attacking him before Orange is between us pushing me away from Man. "Jlw olwtllc ihd pcm Npxlr," he's saying. "Pnw ehfl tl'yl aybwlnwhcj ihd, dprol hw'ee ilea ihd wb nped mbtc p ohw." Red comes to stand between Orange and Man watching him closely. Blue kneels down next to Lady helping her to stand and talking to her in a low tone. Hopefully telling her if she or Man ever try something like that again he'll make them both wish they had never even seen me before.

Orange is pushing my hands down gently giving me a thumb up when I force myself to take my eyes away from Man and Lady. Nice knowing he still has my back. I wonder where he was when I was attacked. Was Orange the one I was trying to call? He said that they had been looking for me for eight days so I guess that I was trying to call him. Or Blue. Or Red. Or anyone for that matter. I doubt 911 would take me seriously if I tried calling that one in. 'My emergency is that I'm being attacked by Foot ninjas in a junkyard.' Yeah, right.

Orange rests his hand on my shoulder and squeezes gently like Blue had done the night before. He's upset again. I find myself staring at him. Why do I remember the Foot before I remember who these guys are? What is up with that? Do I remember what happened to me the most recently first or something? Or did someone just decide that my life has to be miserable from now on? Was it because an elephant sat on me when I was twelve?! I don't… I can't… why is this happening to me?

A pair of arms wraps around me and holds me tight against Orange. His hand presses my face to his shoulder and that's when I realize I'm crying. Shell, I'm such a baby. I lean into his comfort and wrap my arms around his holding him just as close to me as I sob into his shoulder. I can hear him shushing me over my harsh sobs. "Hw'x bfpr Mbcchl. Hw thee ol peyhjiw. Tl'ee ipul rbv opnf wbjlwily olkbyl rbv fcbt hw pcm rbv pcm wlee vx pee rbvy wilbyhlx bc eir wilr wbbf rbc pcm wipw wilr mhm wb rbv. H'ee lulc dpfl wibxl nbkkll dvkkhc wihcjx rbv ehfl xb dvni xb gvxw nped mbtc. Hw'x peyhjiw. Cb bcl thee ivyw rbv ilyl. Rbv'yl xpkl-"


	11. Chapter 11: Behind Door Number Four

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Pretender Fanatic getting your wisdom teeth removed sucks hopefully this chapter will help make you feel better._

_And darke wulf it should be up now, sorry about that._

Chapter Eleven: Behind Door Number Four

When I had first cried on that rooftop… I'd say about two days ago, it had been awful. I had been tired and scared. My frustration was mounting because nothing was making any sense to me. My body was complaining because of the drugs and all the physical strain I had put on my muscles so far that night wasn't helping at all. After being drugged out of my mind for about eight days it's a wonder I was even able to move as well as I was. There is one big difference about this tear fest and the last one.

Last time I didn't have company.

I stopped crying awhile ago but I'm keeping my face buried in his shoulder that way I don't have to actually look at him and therefore acknowledge the fact I have just lost thirty percent of my bodily fluids on his shoulder. He did the same to me so I guess this is alright. Doesn't mean it makes me feel any better.

He has been a great support though. He held me close, saying what I can only assume were things to get me to calm down. He felt when I was beginning to tremble to the point where I could hardly stand and sat us both down on the mats so I wouldn't fall. Then he proceeded to coddle me like I was a baby as I cried into his shoulder. Shell, that was so embarrassing. I'm never going to live that one down. Even though I'm obviously done crying he's still holding me close and his hand has taken up to stroking up and down the back of my shell. Will this humility ever end?

I know how to make it stop. All I have to do is pull away from him and he'd let me go. I think. No, he would let me go. Orange and the other mutants have done nothing to harm me. They been so kind to me and I feel like I know them… like they are somehow familiar. They're not the enemy but why are those two Foot ninjas here? Were they captured and the mutants are forcing them to make me better? It would make sense. Okay… I'll let them help me but if they so much as twitch funny I'll take them down. Or hide behind Red. Depending on what they are trying to do to me.

Wait, it's quiet in here. I lift my head and look around. Yeah, Orange and I are the only two left in the rumpus room. I wonder where everyone else went. Did they leave to give us some privacy? That was nice of them. I don't feel like so much of a wimp anymore. Well, okay, that was definitely a lie. Orange stopped rubbing myself when I lifted my head and has been watching me as I look around the room fro anyone else. He gives me a smile when I look at him and I force myself to give one back. "Sorry about the mess," I mummer as I go to wipe his shoulder off. Shell, that feels so gross.

He bats my hands away gently. "Hw'x nbbe," he tells me. "H dpml rbvy xibvemly pee xebaar, cbt tl'yl lulc." He pauses and lets out a sigh. What's got to him now? Is he upset over his shoulder? As if reading my train of thought he shakes his head no and points to his mouth with his hand coming outward like he was talking. He then points to me, his ears, and finally shakes his head no again. Oh, yeah, I hate not being able to understand you either, Orange. This 'language' works great but it is rather tedious and annoying. I nod my head in agreement, there's got to be an easier way for us to talk.

Orange is moving his hands again. He places his hand palm facing down and his other hand curled up on top of it. Then moving his fingers like they are a pair of legs his hands 'stands' up on his other hand. He points to me and looks confused. Yeah, I guess it's time to get up. I'm going to have to face everyone else eventually, might as well get it over with now. Oh wow, my spine. I'm never going to curl up in a ball on this floor again. It feels like my bones have rusted stiff or something.

Orange stands next to me waiting for me to finish stretching out the kinks in my spine and shoulders. Crud, I know it's helpful a lot of times but my shell is getting in the way of- uhn… much better. I roll my shoulder a few times to help it loosen up a little more. I'm never doing this again. No more crying and laying on these mats. They aren't a very comfortable place to be despite the give they have. Orange is snickering at me. Why do I have the sudden urge to smack him in the back of the head? I don't want to do it hard enough to actually hurt him but enough to let him know he's being a pain.

Orange snaps his fingers to catch my attention and then gestures me to follow him as he heads towards the door. Okay, that's it. I'm sick and tired of being snap at all the time. I snap my fingers several times causing Orange to look over his shoulder at me and stop when he sees I'm still in the same place that I had been before. He looks confused. Oh, I'll tell him what's wrong. I snap my fingers again and shake my head no before crossing my arms. I'm not doing this anymore Orange. Get my point?

Hey… why does he seem leery now? His stance has shifted ever so slightly like he's ready to start running or… defending? Does he think I'm going to attack him again? His eyes dart away from mine for a brief second. Oh shell, he's reading me body language. All he knows is that I'm angry, probably because he snapped at me, and that I'm in a very stand offish pose. Yeah, if our positions were reversed I would be wary too.

I dropped my arms quickly and shake my head no. Wow, this has been one huge misunderstanding… I'll try –okay, I so don't need to try looking stunned right now. He looks at me funny. Yeah, I'm sending him some serious mixed signals here. Umm… I point to my fingers and snap them once. I shake my head no. Come on, get the hint. I don't want to be snapped at anymore. Still looking confused about what exactly was going on, Orange lifts his hand and snaps his fingers again. I shake my head no again and stubbornly remain where I am pointedly looking away from him before looking back to see his reaction. He looks at me, then his fingers, back to me, then- Oh for crying out loud! I don't want to be snapped at anymore. It's no that difficult Orange. Shell, you can be so stupid sometimes, Miche-

"Tipw pyl rbv wyrhcj wb jlw pw ilyl, Mbc?" he asks as he looks back at his hand. "H fcbt hw ipx xbdlwihcj wb mb thwi wil xcpaahcj ovw tipw?" He looks back at me and snaps his fingers again looking very confused. Crud, now what? I don't want to be snapped at anymore but there has to be some way for the Orange to catch my attention. I shake my head no again and this time point to him and say, "Orange." If I can get him to know what his uh… title is then I won't have to snap at him to get his attention. I point to myself and look at him expectantly. If I can get him to call me something then I should be able to recognize it too. End of all the snapping. Maybe if he calls me by my name I'll remember who I am. That would be nice but possible very painful. If remembering one memory is enough to make me collapse then remembering everything about me at once might give me a seizure or something.

"Mbc?" I give him my full attention. I wonder what he just said. It doesn't sound familiar and it's not bringing any kind of memories back. I point to myself, got to make sure this is what he wants to call me, and look at him expectantly. "Mbc!" his eyes light up and I swear he half bounds toward me. Ooff- my ribs! "Orange, don't squeeze so tight!" I gasp and wiggle about in his arms trying to pull away. He let's go and steps back a bit looking confused and sad. "Mbc?" he says in a small voice. Shell, I feel like I just kicked a puppy.

"Orange," I say with a sigh. "I'm sorry, I'm trying to remember but it's not that easy." He just gives me a half smile and punches me in the arm lightly. He gives me the okay sign and then points at himself. "Orange," is he beginning to get-

"Mbc," he says pointing at me. I smile and nod my head yes. I knew he wasn't that stupid. He gives me a full smile and with a wave of his hand asks me to follow. I may not remember who I am yet, Orange, but I promise when I do I'll tell you… somehow.

Everyone out in the main room as if they had been waiting for us to come out of the rumpus room. The only way I know that is because they all seem to be watching us as we enter. I'm blushing. I know I'm blushing. I… think I'll go over here and umm… hide in the kitchen or something. Yeah, that sounds like and excellent idea. Orange heads towards the big table where Lady is practically bouncing. Wonder what he's so excited about now.

Blue's in the kitchen doing the dishes. Wow, I can't help but chuckle slightly. Seeing a giant turtle who I've seen kick some serious Foot ninja butt drying a dish is just such a complete turn about that it's funny. Great, now he's looking at me like I'm insane. That's all I need now. I'm, actually, surprised that they haven't thought I'm insane.

I stick my head looking for some more bottled wate- hey, soda! Not as good as coffee but it still gives off enough caffeine and sugar that it has the same effects. There are several different kinds, I wonder which is which. Where Red? He knew I liked coffee and that I preferred real syrup maybe he knows what kind of soda I usually drink. Hmmm… maybe Blue knows? He's been watching me poke about in the fridge so I just point to the bottom shelf which is nothing but soda and shrug. He just gives me a smile and reaches past me before handing me a silver green and blue stripped can. Okay, that works. I give him a thumbs up as I head back out into the living room.

Orange is babbling on excitedly to Lady about something. Wonder what Red is watching on the tele- "Mbc," huh? I stop where I am with the can of soda halfway to my mouth. Orange seems proud of something and everyone else who is standing around the big table seems to be shocked. "H mbc'w wihcf il npc vcmlyxwpcm pcrwihcj lexl tl xpr. H wihcf hw'x dbyl olnpvxl il ylnbjchqlx tipw ihx cpdl xbvcmx ehfl cbt," Orange is telling them. Okay, I wonder what that's all about. He beckons me to come over.

I'm not eager to get near Man or Lady again. What if they try something again? Well, Orange is right there and so is Rat. I don't think either of them will let the Foot try anything on me. I know Blue would come flying out the kitchen in a heartbeat and his swords are on his shell. Red might be watching the TV now but he is right here too. No, I don't think those two Foot ninjas would try anything unless they were suicidal. I walk toward the table trying to act as nonchalant as possible. I don't want them to think I'm scared of them, the Foot might be able to use that to there advantage.

It would be best to keep Orange between me and those two as much as possible without making it blaringly obvious. I head around and come to stand on his left. There, let's see them get to me now. I take a sip of my soda as Orange yaps about something. Mmmm… it has a light almost nonexistence taste that is just barely hinted with lemon and it seems really bubbly. I wonder if it's some kind of seltzer water. Either way it's good but I wonder if i-

WHOA!

I jump backwards soda completely forgotten as I escape. I so wasn't ready for that. Lady had just reached past Orange who was listening to Rat say something and touched my wrist. I'm not sure but I think she was trying to grab me. My sudden flight from standing next to Orange ad the sound of a full can of soda falling to the floor caught everyone's attention. Red jumped up from where he was slouched on the couch and Blue comes half running out of the kitchen. Lady stepped away from me and Man jumped out of his chair reaching out as if to catch her. Rat looks immediately to me and Orange turns toward me approaching slowly with his hands moving up and down at about waist level.

I stand from where I was crouched on the floor as he gets closer to me. I have no intention of calming down or relaxing around these two again, Orange. Shell, they get within ten feet of me again and I'll give them a first hand experience of what I put their friends through in the junkyard. Orange drapes his arm over my shoulder. He looks confused, vaguely points to my defensive stance and then points to the two Foot ninjas behind him. Well, geez, I don't know maybe because their buddies decided to screw with my head. Why do you think I'm defensive around them, Orange! I nod toward the two humans, punch my fist and then point towards me.

"Uhhh… Bfpr, Mbc ipx hw hc ihx ilpm wipw rbv wtb pwwpnflm ihd," he says. Guess he's just trying to translate what I just said. I wonder if I can get him to tell them where they can shove it.

"Wipw tbvem dpfl xlcxl," Why does Lady look sad now? Sad she didn't get me like she had hoped? She takes a shuddering breath and I watch as Man rests his hand on her side. "Xhcnl il mblxc'w yldldoly pcrbcl hw'x ulyr ehfler wipw il olehlulx wipw tl pyl ilyl wb ivyw ihd. Bvy ulyr aylxlcnl ilyl dpr pnwvpeer ol ihcmlyhcj ihx ylnbulyr."

"Hk rbv'yl pobvw wb xvjjlxw wipw cbw olhcj ilyl tbvem ol hc ihx olxw hcwlylxw wilc mbc'w lulc wihcf bk hw, Payhe," Blue looks a lot more calm now that I'm away from them. Nice to know he cares so much about me. "Clsw wb Mbcchl rbv pyl wil bcer bcl tib npc khjvyl bvw tipw'x jbhcj bc."

She sighs and sits back down in the chair, "H fcbt, Elb. Ovw dlmhnpe aypnwhnlx tlyl cluly dr xwybcj xvhw. Wilyl'x gvxw xb dpcr wihcjx wb wpfl hcwb nbcxhmlypwhbc wipw H'd ipuhcj p ipym whdl wb khjvyl bvw tilyl wn oljhc." Her hand sweeps over the large table still covered in books, "Lulc thwi pee wil dlmhnpe mbnvdlcwpwhbc Mbc'x nbeelnwlm pobvw wil bcer wihcj wipw H npc xpr kby nlywphc hx wipw wil Kbbw vxlm myvjx wb jhul ihd pdclxhp. Pcm px ebcj px il mblxc'w jhul dl p oebbm xpdael H tbc'w fcbt kby xvyl ibt wb ilea ihd by hk H'd lulc poel wb ilea ihd."

"Mbc," I look at Orange. He points to the two of us then our eyes before pointing towards the large television behind Red. I guess I could go for some television viewing. Just as long as I don't have to worry about Man or Lady pouncing on me half way through a program anyways. Red doesn't even react as we walk over and flop down on the couch. At least I have both Orange and Red between me and the humans. Orange picks up the remote and starts flipping through the channel at a dizzying speed obviously looking for something to watch but I'm not really paying attention to that.

Red is watching me watch him. His eyes seem tense and guarded. That same strange helplessness is back. His body is tense like he was expecting a big battle coming up. He keeps clenching and unclenching his fists like he doesn't know exactly what to do with them. He kind of looks lost, like he wants to do something, anything, but he just doesn't know what. He finally breaks our little staring contest with a gusty sigh and palming his face before heading towards the rumpus room. He's upset. Someone should go after him and help him to calm down before he- I wince from the loud crash that comes from the other room. I don't hear any cursing so I guess he's alright but whatever crashed isn't.

Blue sighs, "H'ee jb wp-"

"Cb," huh? I turn and watch as Rat heads towards the other room with slow and steady steps. "Hw thee lpxl Mbcpwleeb'x dhcm hk rbv pcm rbvy oybwily yldphc ilyl thwi ihd. Xwpr, xll hk rbv npc ilea Payhe thwi ily wpxf." There's another loud crash from the rumpus room. What's Red doing? Attacking the walls? "H thee nped Ypaiple's pcjly." Blue bows slightly to Rat who has just about vanished down the passageway to the other room. He then turns back to where Man and Lady are. Good, I guess he's on guard duty and Rat will calm Red down.

Okay, Orange is obviously enjoying this program but I can't make any sense of it. I get the whole coyote wanting to catch and eat the bird thing but where did it get the intelligence to write? Okay that was a poor choice of words coming from a five foot who's capable of talking and writing but not in whatever language his hosts are using. Still, where did that anvil come from? And why did the ground it was standing on drop away and not the ledge the bird was standing on? That's impossible. And that coyote would be a lot more then just dizzy falling from the height. I don't think it would survive.

"Orange," I need to get away from this program before I go insane. He looks at me with his eyes practically dancing with mirth and wiping at the tears in his eyes. Shell he's such a little kid sometimes. Make that all the time. He's never going to grow up. I point to myself, act like I'm taking a drink of something, point to the kitchen behind me and then point towards him with a questioning look. He shakes his head no and I hop over the back of the couch. There a break away from the insanity and a new soda. I glance over to see about the mess I made when I dropped the first can of whatever but someone has already cleaned it up. I have to stop dropping things on the floor that make a big mess.

I take another silver, blue and green can from the fridge. I wonder what this stuff is called anyways. I like it a lot. Maybe it's my favorite drink or something. I can hear Orange laughing form here but that show really isn't holding my interest. It's more entertaining for me to watch Orange then the actual show. I toy with the tab on the can of soda. What else is there for me to do? Orange is watching the show, I shouldn't distract Blue from his guard duty and I have a feeling the Red and Rat are having a bounding moment. I really hope Red is going to be alright. Hmmm… I wonder if I can vault up to the second floor like Red did. Besides if I fall I'm sure everyone will notice and have a freaking panic attack over it.

I put down my soda on the table and take a few steps back. Okay. I can do this. He took a few running steps. Jump. He put his foot right about here. Perfect. There's the rail. Roll over it and -Oooff. Okay, so my landing wasn't as graceful as his had been but I still made it up and no one seems to have noticed. I was right there are more rooms up here. Four doo- make that five doors, one is way down there around the slight bend in the room, line the wall in front of me. Hmmm… let's see what is behind door number three.

This rooms a mess. I wonder if this is Rat's room because whoever owns this room definitely has packrat qualities. I pick my way carefully across the floor looking over everything that litters the floor. Wonder if this guy ever heard of organization or even cleaning would be nice. There's comic books, a half eaten pack of gum, and –please tell me that's not a month old pizza crust on the floor. Yes it is, gross! Half a ping pong table pressed against the wall so whoever can play the game with themselves. There are several soccer and football laying around. There' several skateboards in here, guess now I know why there is a half pipe in the main room. It wouldn't fit up here. On the far wall there's a desk that is cover in a pile of papers. Above it is a bed set up like a bunk bed over the desk. That looks cozy. Amid the pile of pillows and blankets scattered about on the bed there is a teddy bear that is just sitting up there like its waiting for someone to come to bed.

Orange's room. This is Orange's room. I kneel down and scoop up a paddle ball fiddling with the ball on the end of the string attaching it to the paddle. Yes, this room just screams Orange. I can see him in here goofing off for hours with all theses toys. All the papers on his desk are actually little stories he's wrote. He wants to write stories for kids one day. Little ones like six and seven years old. He's going to be great at it. He's still going to be a big kid when that happens and that will help him put the contents of his stories in better perspective for the children who reads them. I set the paddle ball back down where I found it. Let's see what are behind the other doors now.

Door number one leads to a room that is the exact opposite of Orange's. It's clean and tidy. Almost enough that it makes you feel like your contaminating the room with your presences. Weird. Whoever owns this room is certainly a neat freak. Are those swords? Yup, six katanas hang on specially crafted holder line the wall. I bet I'm in Blue's room. There are candles of varying heights and widths setting around the room. Bet they all smell different too. His bed is neatly made. The blanket looks like it's been pulled so tight I might be able to bounce a quarter off it. I kind of wish I had one so I could give it a try.

The center piece for the room is this large paper screen that is along the back wall. You can see where it has been damaged, it looks like part of the frame has been broken and the paper was ripped. Someone took a lot of time to fix it. The paper has a picture of Japanese cranes standing in the water and flying in the sky beyond. Quite a beautiful piece actually. I'm glad Blue took the time to repair it. In front of the screen is a rice paper mat that looks terribly uncomfortable to sit on but I can just see Blue sitting there in front of the screen meditating. He might even put some of the candles on the floor around him to help him relax and reach a higher plane of knowledge and understanding. Oh-kay that was a little weird, onto the next room.

Red's room. Door two leads to Red's room hands down. Who else would have both a punching bag and a speed bag in their room? And that weight set is so much bigger then the one in that room downstairs. There are several planks of plywood covering up the brick wall with several bull's-eyes painted on it at different levels. Why would he- oh, target practice. There are surikens and kunai littering the center of each bull's-eye. Wow, now this is a stereo system. He could probably make the walls shake with a set up like that. Bet Blue doesn't like it when he turns it on when he's mediating. Is that a hammock? How can he sleep in a hammock at night? Is that why he's always angry? Because of the lack of sleep?

There is one thing that seems very out of place in Red's room. Tucked back behind the hammock and away from where it would get in the way of his weights and fighting paraphernalia is a desk with shelves above it. What's on the shelves? Models. Lots and lots of models. Not the kind you snap together either, these are the ones you spend hours and hours on gluing every little piece together. He has a half built car sitting on his desk right now. The shelf above the desk is filled with models of hot rods and other vehicles. Wow, he's been doing this for quite a while I guess and he's really good. If I didn't know any better I would say he bought these instead of made them.

If I thought any of the other rooms were bizarre then this room takes the cake for odd. It's not as much a room as it is a workshop. Yeah it has a bed and desk like the other rooms but it so much more different. There are electronics everywhere. In the center of the room is a large table, almost the size of the one downstairs but instead of being covered in books this one is crammed with half built or dissembled things. It's hard to tell where one gizmo ends and another begins. There is one spot that has been semi cleared that has a partially built laptop resting on it. Why on earth do they want another computer? There's a huge one downstairs and there one over there against the wall too. Talk about a computer nerd. Like in Orange's room the desk is covered with paper but they look more like mathematical computations and mechanical sketches. Bet that this filing cabinet is full of the same thing and is this a chemistry set or what? Better not touch anything and mess up someone experiment.

What really catches my eye is the huge drafting table that takes up the whole wall on the right side of the room. Wow, that's massive. There are lamps every so many inches along the top of the drafting board. I bet they would really light that thing up. There are several pieces of paper taped down to it. It looks like someone was in the process of designing a motorcycle. Man, whoever did this went into some real detail. They were even figuring out how much stress is put on the front- Hey wait a minute. That's wrong. Sure most of it's right but that nine in the thousandths place should be an eight. I snatch up and pencil and quickly erase the mistake adding in the correct number. At high speeds the bolt might sheer and cause the whole front axle to break free. That would be bad for whoever was on it at the time. Hey, wait a minute… How did I… why did I… I set the pencil down slowly and look around the room again.

This is my room…

This is my room!

Holy shell! I'm home! I'm home and never even realized it! That's how I know where everything is! That's why I feel so safe here! That must be why everyone panics every time I move wrong! We're housemates! We live together! Shell, I'm home! That means all this stuff is mine! I was designing a bike on my own! Wow, I must be smart or something! Hey that means that chemistry set is mine! Sweet, let's see what I was doing!

Okay. I was heating the water. About to add this to that and let it boil. Good, good. Now put in some sodium and… Oh crud… What did I just put in there? Better yet what's in that beaker?! Oh shell. That is not supposed to be boiling like that. Crud… Crud… Okay don't panic just turn the Bunsen burner off and back away. Shell, it's still boiling. Ummmm… shake a leg and hit the deck, you moron!!

BBBBOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!

Ow… That hurt my ears and slamming my ribs down on the ground like that was not a good idea either. At least I don't have anything to dangerous up here. I keep that safely locked away… somewhere where I know Orange can get into it and mess around. I am glad I have this big table in here. It's the perfect thing to duck behind in case of a random explosion. At least nothing caught on fire. It's a good thing I turned that burner off. It could have igni-

Red suddenly explodes into the room, chest heaving and eyes flying to the remnants of my chemistry set. He looks around the room wildly his eyes finally settling on me where I'm standing on the opposite side of the table from where the chemistry set had been. Wow, he's really freaked out. Shell, I'm really freaked out. I should never have started goofing off with chemicals like that. I could have killed myself. Is that why Red is so panicked, because he's worry about me. Actually right now he doesn't look so much panicked as he does pissed. Uh oh…

"You know, Red," I'm able to gulp out. Oh yes he is very pissed now. "It's a really bad idea to mess around with chemicals when you can't read the labels."


	12. Chapter 12: Turbulent Thoughts

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

Ozlex_ has asked me which way is better to read this story, with or without the translations. Honestly it can be read either way and still have the same effect. I guess it would be better to read the entire chapter before going back through and translating it so that way you can settle yourself better into what is going through Donnie's head. Then you can go back through and get an idea of what the rest of the family is going though. I have been thinking of posting a series of one-shots on what the rest of the family was going through during this story but I haven't decided yet. _Lady Dragon010_ posted the correct code translation on the review boards so you know where to go to get the code. _

_Wow, another big chapter but it has a lot of important stuff in it so I guess that's good._

_And a special thanks to darke wulf for the encoder. I used it on this chapter and the translation process went a lot faster. ;)_

Chapter Twelve: Turbulent Thoughts

There are two things that I have decided are far more humiliating then anything else. The first one is crying in front a group of complete strangers. Talk about humiliating. I feel like I'm walking around carrying a large sign that says cry baby. The second one is being carried around by Red. I have two legs and two feet. I'm perfectly capable of walking around on my own. I'm not disabled in anyway or about to pass out at any given second. And I just don't like being treated like an invalid. It really grates on my nerves. So of course I'm not going to like it when Red marches up to me grabs my wrist and throws me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes

"RED! PUT ME DOWN! COME ON! THIS ISN'T FUNNY! LET ME GO!" Actually I quite detest it which is why I'm doing my best to wiggle off his shoulder or make him drop me. His grip is like steel though and about the only thing I can do is probably look like a complete idiot as he heads out the door. "RED! FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! PUT ME DOWN!" He walks calmly out of the room despite my struggles and heads for the stairs. Blue and Orange were standing next to the door watching us head down into the main room with stunned expressions on their faces. Yeah, I'm pretty stunned too.

He heads down the stairs, across the floor to where the television is still playing that cartoon show that Orange had been so enthralled in. Wha-Hey! Ooff! My shell bounces lightly off the couch. He just threw me off his shoulder and onto the couch. At least it's not the floor and it was light enough so that it didn't hurt anything. I just wasn't expecting it. Oh shell. I can tell just by looking at Red that he's angry, more then angry, he's pissed. Actually, I think it would be closer to call it enraged.

"XWPR!" he yells pointing at me where I'm laying on the couch. Oh-kay. Pretty sure he wants me to stay put. Shell, he looks mad. I think I will stay here. I don't think I will even risk moving from this position. I nod my head yes and he huffs, seemingly satisfied if still mad, and stomps away. I gulp. Note to self: Don't piss off Red. He's scary when mad.

Rat kneels next to me looking worried. His paw comes up to rest on my forehead gently. I guess I scared everyone with my little vanishing act followed by that big explosion. Shell, I scared myself when I realized what I did. I'm lucky I'm not hurt or worst. His paw comes around to cup the side of my face. He's still worried. Well, I really haven't moved since Red… put me here. I should let him know I'm alright. I give him a weak smile and the okay hand gesture. He smiles back to me and removes his hand from my face, coxing me to sit up properly on the couch and not sprawled across it. I'm pretty sure that Red won't flip out if Rat tells me to sit up.

There's a flurry of activity going on behind me. I twist around and look over the back of the couch to see what all the commotion is. Oh, looks like they're cleaning up the mess I made. Again. They really shouldn't be doing that, I should be the one cleaning the mess up. I made it. Then again, they might be doing it because they are such attentive hosts. I frown but they aren't my hosts. If their rooms are up there next to mine then they are my… housemates? Friends? I think that has been made obvious with everything they have done for me. They've done a lot for me. More then any friend probably would do. Maybe they're closer then friends. Maybe they're my fam-

"-pc lrl bc ihd!" huh? What's Red mad at now? Uh… Why is he yelling at Orange? Orange didn't blow up part of the room. That was me. Red press up into Orange's supposed personal space and shoves his finger in to the center Orange's chest. Orange stumbled backwards a bit with the force of the blow. What the shell is Red's problem! He can't do that to Orange! "Kby bcnl hc rbvy ehkl pnw ehfl pc pmvew pcm mn tipw rbv xpr rbv thee mb!"

"Ypai! Lcbvji!" Good, Blue will stop Red from picking on Orange just like he always does when those two are fighting. Yeah, now I know why I know how they act. I must've lived here a long time with them to know as much as I do know about their behavior. Red takes a step back from Orange but you can see it in his eyes that this little spat of theirs is far from over. "Il mblx ipul p abhcw, Dhflr. Rbv mhm xpr rbv tbvem flla pc lrl bc Mbc xb il tbvemc'w jlw ivyw." Wait a minute. Blue stopped Red from yelling at Orange so he could lecture him? What the shell is that all about? Oh great, now he's crossed his arms? That means he's not going to stop lecturing anytime soon. Why is he lecturing Orange anyways? Come on guys, it was me! Seeing Red open up his mouth as if to add something to whatever Blue was saying sent me over the edge. A very familiar protective feeling built up inside me. There was no reason that those two should be tag teaming Orange. He didn't do anything wrong!

I'm up and over the back of the couch before I can even blink. I charge the short distance and slam into both of them, blind siding them and shove them back away from Orange who has this surprised almost 'what the shell was that?' look on his face. Not ready for the sudden attack both of them hit the ground in a tangle of limbs and a pile of bodies. They tussle for a moment on the floor trying to figure out which way is up before looking startled at me as they stand. Yeah, I put you two on the floor. How do you two like them apples? Bet you'll both think differently when you try ganging up on him again won't you?

"If you two are going to yell at anyone you can yell at me. I caused the explosion not Orange." I step between Orange and them. I'm rather opposed to violence but it's not fair of them to yell at Orange for something I did. "So if you want to pick a fight with anyone you can fight with me," I bring my hands up and shift my feet further apart so I'm more balanced. This is probably not the smartest thing I've done in… as long as I can remember and maybe even longer then that. One of them could wipe the floor with me and I don't even want to think of what both of them could do fighting together. Yup, not a very bright move but if they want a throw down I'll give them one. Even if it ends with me in –oh, I don't know- traction! They seem to be getting ready for a fight too. Oh-kay this is goi- "LCBVJI!" Wow, I guess Rat just blew the whistle.

Thankfully.

I feel a hand on my shoulder gently pulling me back. "Mbc," Orange points at me, pounds a fist into his open palm, gives a kind of rolling wrist and hand gesture at Red and Blue, and then summing it up with a shrug. I sigh, this language is really starting to get on my nerves but at least it's a way of communicating. I'll just have to keep everything simple. I point to the other two turtles, punch my open palm and then point to him. I then repeat the series of hand gestures except that instead of pointing at him, I point at myself. Hey, it's not funny. Why are you laughing Orange?

"Mbc gvxw wbem dl wipw hk rbv wtb tpcw wb ahnf p khjiw thwi dl rbv'ee ipul wb khjiw ihd wbb," I still don't see what's so funny about this. Obviously though everyone is finding some form of odd humor in it. Oh geez, even the Foot ninjas are laughing at me. Nice to know I can amuse the masses. Wiping at his eyes Orange gives me an 'okay' sign along with a mini bow. He then punches me lightly in the arm, points to himself and the other two turtles and gives me a thumbs up. I don't think everything is alright by the way he was acting but I guess if he says so…

"Dhnilepcjleb," Rat's walks around the couch and folds his arms behind his back. Looking between Orange and me, he asks Orange, "Ibt tlee mb rbv vcmlyxwpcm tipw il hx wyrhcj wb xpr?"

"Pee bk hw. Hw'x ehfl tl'yl aeprhcj p ypleer ebcj jpdl bk nipypmlx." I glance over at Orange as he speaks. What's going on?

"Wilc H wihcf hw'x whdl tl khcm bvw lspnwer tipw ipaalclm wb Mbcpwleeb. Pcm tipw il yldldolyx." Orange nods his head and everyone seems more interested in him as his hands begin to move. He gestures to everyone in the room with us, points to me and the taps his temple. What do I know about them or what do I know in general? I tap my head and shrug. Come on, Orange; give me something more to go on. He points to the clock and spins his finger around it going against the hands before pointing to me. Oh, my past. I know nothing about me but I d know a little about what happened to me. I hold my finger and thumb just barely an inch away from each other.

"Il xprx il fcbtx p ehwwel ohw," Orange tells the group. I guess he's their translator for the evening.

"Tipw mblx il yldldoly?" I wonder if this is going to be a two way translation. I hope so, how else will I know what Blue just asked.

"Jllq, Elb, H'd jlwwhcj wilyl. Mbc'w yvxi dl." He points to me, acts like he's saying something, then points to himself and everyone else in the room and finally taps the side of his head. There really isn't that much to tell and I rather not tell the humans. If they get out they might be able to tell their comrades… actually Blue and Red might be able to use what I know to get more information out of them and it's not like I'll be telling them anything that they don't already know. I nod my head yes. Guess the best place to start would be at the beginning with the fight at the junk yard. Ummm… this is going to be an interesting experience.

Okay so how exactly am I going to do this? Ummm… I left somewhere after a huge arguments with several individuals and went to the junkyard where I was ambushed. How do I express all that? Heh, guess I could point at Red and Blue for the argument part. No, I don't want them to think that they were the ones arguing. For all I know that may set them off again. I'll just skip that part. I point to myself and use my fingers to 'walk' through the air. How do I… of course, the garbage can! I walk over to the object in question and sweep my hand around the room.

"Mbc yldldolyx jbhcj wb wil gvcfrpym," yeah, Orange is my translator I guess.

Now for the huge fight where I got my shell handed to me in the end. Well, I did take out about twenty of them on my own before that but I bet compared to these three that's nothing. I think I'll just gloss over this too. I act like I'm examining something and then shake my head no and throw it over my shoulder before repeating the process. After three times I stop, point behind me, point back to the object and then at my eyes. I bend my leg bringing my foot up where I can point at it and lift my hands in a basic offensive stance. I turn around and punch my open palm before sweeping my arms out wide like I'm measuring something big.

"Il tpx ebbfhcj kby p wihcjpdpobo tilc il xpt Kbbw chcgpx hc wil ylkelnwhbc bk hw. Wilyl tpx wilc p ohj khjiw."

I point to myself and then to my two fingers which I have 'standing' up. Using my fingers like a little me, I lift one to act like it was kicking then pinched the up raised 'leg' with the thumb and finger on my other hand. I proceed to flip my 'me' hand up and over the other hand. I then wave my hand down my front and point to the ground. I stack my hands on top of each other and then pull the bottom out to place on the top. Rapping my knuckles on my shell I wait for him to translate.

"Mvyhcj wil khjiw il tpx npvjiw bkk jvpym pcm kehaalm buly bcwb ihx xwbdpni tilyl wil cjcgpx aeprlm 'ahj-ahel-bc-wil-wvywel'."

I fold my arms behind my back with my wrists crossed. I bring my hands forward again and act like I'm wrapping something around one wrist. I hope Orange's get the idea. This would be so much better if I could just talk to them. Shell, even writing this wouldn't be half as bad as acting all this out. I bend slightly at the knees and act like I'm lifting something up. I take several steps away and pretend to set my invisible object again. Hmmm… How do I make a van? I hold my hands as if I was gripping a wheel and tilt it back and forth. I then outline a box point to myself and then the floor again. Okay, I guess he understands what I'm saying. He doesn't look confused. Yet. I put my hands over each other and then walk over and grab the hilt of one of the swords peeking over the top of his shoulders.

Eeeeep! Ow. I'm barely able to grab the sword before my wrist is caught in a strong grip. Yeah. Okay. I get it. You don't like turtles messing with your swords. Got it Blue but I how else am I suppose to explain the word sharp to Orange? I give him a half heart glare and hold up an okay sign. He still seems leery. Geez, he needs to take a chill pill. Actually everyone does, they all look a little freaked. You'd think that they didn't know I know how to use a katana. Wait, do I know how to use a katana? I'll wonder about that later. The death grip on my wrist loosens slightly and I'm able to feel my fingers again. I'd hate to play mercy with Blue but I think I would take him on in a game of mercy faster then I would Red. I pull the sword a few inches out of it sheath and point to the edge of it, point to the back of my neck, then I slide it back into its home and stepping away from Blue who lets go of my wrist. Ow. I rub my at my wrist, thank god I used my good wrist for that. I glare at Blue again. There was really no need for that.

"Mbc tpx whlm, npyyr pcm avw hcwb wil opnf bk p upc. Wil Kbbw ahelm bc wba bk ihd pjphc pcm bcl bk wild tpx ibemhcj p fpwpcp wb wil opnf bk ihx clnf."

"Mblx Mbc fcbt tilyl wilr wbbf ihd?" Red suddenly asks.

Orange points to me, then his head, he acts like he's searching the room for something and then acts like he's reaching out and taking something forcibly. Yeah, I know where they took me but I don't think I'm going to tell any of them that anytime soon. I know these three are really good fighters but I don't know if they're good enough to try and take on a Foot ninja stronghold. I wish I could remember them. Heck remembering how good I am would be even better. Besides I know the minute I told them where to go Red would be out the door in a second with Blue hot on his heels either trying to stop him or going to join him in some major shell-kicking action. I shake my head no, I'll tell them eventually but not now. I don't want them to get hurt.

"Xbyyr Ypai, cb mhnl," Orange says. Red doesn't look particularly pleased with the news but I'm sure he'll cope.

"Orange," I say catching his attention again. I act like I'm driving then I put my hands together mimicking when the Foot opened the doors to the back of the van with them. I pretend I'm picking something up again and walk over to a nearby table and set 'it' down. I put my forearm over the table and then use my other hand to act like one of the straps that held me down during my stay with the 'good' doctor. I then pretend I'm holding a needle and pretend to inject myself in the arm. Geez, even though I know I'm not really injecting myself I can feel my stomach flip at the mere though of a needle piecing my skin. Is this considered post traumatic stress or was I always scared of needles?

"Wilr wbbf ihd xbdltilyl pcm xwypaalm ihd wb p wpoel tilyl wilr hcglnwlm ihd thwi xbdlwihcj."

"Pcm il mblxc'w yldldoly tipw hw tpx?" Lady looks thoughtful.

"Bcl xln," Orange points to me, taps his head, 'holds' up a needle and then looks at me confused. I shake my head no. I wish I knew what they gave me. Then I would just have to look it up o- except I can't read. Great. Lady seems to sigh in exasperation. I wonder what's eating at her? "Mbc," I look back at Orange who rolls his hand over and over again. He's right, back to the whole point of this 'conversation'.

I point to the clock and whirl my finger around it clockwise. I really don't remembering anything between being injected and waking in that metal room. Hope nothing happened then but if it did it's probably when I obtained amnesia. Wow, that makes it sound like I willingly wanted amnesia. I rub at my eyes and look about confused. I hold my head and then my stomach like both were paining me. I make a walking motion with my fingers again. I really have no idea how to explain my escape from the metal room or the lab so I'll just ignore those. Maybe when I can understand them better I'll give them the details to that whole experience. I should tell them I found my bo. I spread my hands away from each other and then grip the imaginary stick like I do my bo.

"Il mbxlc'w fcbt ibt ebcj il tpx bvw ovw tilc il tpflx va il'x poel wb khcm ihx ob pcm il swpywx tpcmlyhcj pybvcm."

I point to my foot, my eyes and then myself. I make my fingers move back and forth like crazy like I was running. I point over to a corner, act like I'm pulling my bo over my shoulder and then punch my fist. I wonder what did happen to it. The last place I remember seeing it was at the construction site. I hope someone picked it up and brought it with. That was my favorite bo. Wait, I have more then one? Back to the story, nutcase, you can look for the others later. I point to myself and spread my fingers so they make a 'V' for victory sign. Then I make my fingers walk about more and then put one hand over my eyes like I was looking for something. I point at Man and then my eyes. I then point at Orange, tap my head and roll my wrist a few times.

"Bfpr, il'x xllc wyrhcj wb elpul pcm lcmx va olhcj nipxlm pybvcm or Kbbw cgcjpx. Wilr nbycly ihd pcm il thcx wil khjiw. Il tpcmlyx pybvcm phdelxxer olkbyl yvcchcj hcwb Npxlr pcm tl fcbt wil ylxw."

"Or wil xbvcmx bk hw il'x yldldolyhcj il'x dbxw ylnlcw dldbyhlx. Hk wil epwlxw wihcj il yldldolylm tpx wil khjiw pw wil gvvfrpym wil clsw wihcj il xibvem yldldoly hx-"

Blue suddenly cuts Lady off, "Hx wil khjiw olwtllc wil kbvy bk vx wipw mybul ihd bvw bk wil ephy hc wil khyxw aepnl." He turns to Orange, "Dhflr nbcuhcnl ihd wipw il ipx wb xwpr ilyl hc wil ephy. H mbc'w npyl tipw rbv ipul wb wlee ihd gvxw dpfl ihd aybdhxl wipw il tbc'w elpul."

"Elb-"

Blue really needs to learn some manners. Even if Lady is a prisoner, she's still a lady and should be treated like one. He should really let her finish her thoughts. "H fcbt hwx olwwly hk il yldldolyx lulyrwihcj bc ihx btc, Payhe, ovw hk wipw khjiw mybul ihd bvw bk wil ephy bcnl hw'x abxxhoel il dhjiw elpul hk il yldldolyx hw."

"Pcm thwi ihd ipek opflm wil tpr il hx il'ee lhwily jlw ebxw by wil Kbbw thee jlw ihd pjphc," Red sighs.

Lady looks determined. I wonder what Red and Blue said to make her look like that? "H'ee xlw va p mbby pepyd xb hk il balcx hw rbv'ee fcbt."

"Mbc," I look over at Orange. Why does he look scared? Did something bad happen? I points to me, holds up his hand like he wants me to stay and then gestures around the room. He wants me to stay here? I guess so… where else would I go? He shakes his finger at me like he's scolding me, taps the side of his head and points to me before giving me the stay command again. Why is he so adamant that I stay here now?

Before I can ask him he points to me and then himself before clasping his hands together. Yeah, I kind of figured that the two of us were close somehow. He gestures to where the others have started having a side conversation together and gives me that same 'close' sign. Wait a second, there is no way I'm close to a pair of Foot ninjas. He must have noticed my dark look because he looks at me curiously. I point to Lady and Man before pointing at my Foot befo-

Orange is shaking his head rather venomously before I can even finish. They're not Foot?! What the shell?! They're humans! They have to be Foot ninjas! Yet Orange is still giving me that 'close' hand sign. That's a bunch of bull. He must have noticed my angry face because he puts one hand over his heart and raises his hand like he's swearing an oath. He points to Lady and Man, makes the 'close' sign and then points to me. He 'swears' again and does the same gesture except he incorporates the other mutants instead of me. He gestures to everyone in the room with other the 'close' and 'I swear' signs. Still, I don't kn- Orange points at Lady and Man, shakes his head no and then punches his fist. He does it again but instead of them never attacking me he acts like he's forcibly taking something away from me. He points to them again and gently takes my arm like he's helping me. Orange takes a moment to think and then gestures to everyone and 'helps' me again.

I look over at Lady and Man. Can I really trust them? I mean, they're humans. Humans shouldn't even know I exist. That's what the voice told me back in that apartment. I did feel… safe there… just like a felt safe when I saw Red for the first time. Lady giggles at something and I frown. That giggle… I know that giggle… I know her… and I know Man. They're… my… friends? I rub at my head. Great. Another headache. But at least I know that they're okay. Even if they are humans.

I look back at Orange who's looking like he's waiting for me to come to a decision. I give him a slow nod yes. I'm pretty sure they're my friends… but -until I fully remember them- I'm going to keep my eye on them. Orange seems overjoyed then looks like he's considering something. He bites his lip, glances over at the odd group again and then back at me with a determined face. Why do I have a feeling I'm not going to like this? He shakes his head no, gives me this horrified face like he had just seen a monster, points at me and gives me an 'okay' sign. Yeah, if he's telling me not to freak out then I know I'm not going to like this. He takes a deep breath, points at lady, act like he's injecting something into his arm and then points at me.

WHAT??

My jaw drops and he shakes his head no. Oh that's right he told me not to freak out. Well what did he expect me to do? Say yes? Screw that! I wouldn't let any of them near me with a needle right now. He acts like he's helping me again and then spreads his hands apart before pointing at her. I don't see how injecting anything into me is going to let her help me more. Orange holds his arm out again with a needle in the other hand and then jerks his thumb away from his arm. He shakes his head no and points into his arm. I don't care if she going to take a blood sample. It's the whole needle thing that has me freaked.

Yeah, I'm scared of needles. I'm pretty sure that this is some form of post traumatic stress. Still… I look over at Lady and bite my lip gently. She can read where's I can't and she is a doctor… if she has a blood sample she might be able to figure out what the Foot gave me and would then be able to treat me for this. I'm going to have to get over this whole needle fear if even for a minute. If she can get a blood sample I should be able to get my memories back. But… if she is a friend then I don't want to hurt her if I flip out over the needle again. I'm glad she wasn't hurt when I sent her over the coffee table. That could have been bad if she had been. I know how to prevent me from hurting her.

I just know he's not going to be thrilled about doing this.

I nod my head yes to Orange but quickly hold up one finger. He seems to brace himself. Yeah, I don't think he's going to like my condition either. None of them will. I point over at Red, grab my good wrist in a tight grasp, point to myself, then lady and hold a 'needle' to my skin. Orange's eyes are wide but it's the only way I'm going to let her take my blood. If I flip out and Red has a good grip on me I won't be able to break free and get into a fight with them again. I don't want to hurt anyone, especially if they're my friends. I point to myself, punch my open fist, and then point at everyone.

Orange palms his face. "Bi dpc…" he mutters. Dragging his hand down his face he takes a deep breath and nods his head yes. Good. Now I don't have to worry about hurting anyone. I just need to calm down now. Trying not to freak out would be preferable. "Ilr jvrx," Orange says stepping away from me. "H jbw xbdl jbbm cltx pcm xbdl opm cltx-" I tune out the rest of what he is saying. I palm my face and take a deep breath. I just can't think about needles. Nope, no needles. None at all. Lady is just going to look at the needle marks on my ar-

Who the shell am I trying to kid here?!

I'm going to freak!

"**TIPW**??" Red doesn't sound too thrilled with the whole idea either. Still this way no one gets hurt. I can hear Orange talking to him in a low tone, pleading with him by the sounds of it. I risk a quick glance between my fingers. Shell, he looks so lost. Betrayed. I guess he really cares about me and the though of holding me down against my will doesn't sit well with him. It doesn't sit well with me either but at least I won't hurt anyone this way. A lump has formed in my throat that I can't seem to swallow. Oh shell… this is going to suck.

"Xilee," I hear Red growl out. Oh shell, he agreed? I was kind of hoping he wasn't going to agree to this. I try and swallow again. Still not happening. Great. Maybe I'll pass out from panic? That'll make this easier on everyone. I feel a pair of arms slow wrap around me. Oh… shell. Okay, just calm down and try not to think of what's going to happen next. He's not really restraining me. He's holding me tenderly –gently- like he's afraid I'm going to break or something. Considering what's going to happen I feel like I'm going to break. Snap actually. Red's holding me like he's hugging me. That's it. Think of this as a hug. Red doesn't give out hugs so cherishes this. I bury my face into the side of his neck and wrap my arms around his shell. There, use his neck like a blindfold, if I can't see the needle this whole thing might not be that bad.

"Jb kpxw Payhe," Red's voice seems incredible loud even though I know he's just mumbling. His chest rumbles when he talks this low. "Il'x peylpmr xwpywhcj wb wyldoel." I feel him shift his arms around. One reaches around and pulls my good arm off his shell while the other one stretches across my shoulders. His hand tucks up into my armpit where he holds it outward. The grip on my good wrist is strong as he holds it out away from us. I try to swallow that lump again. Still not happening.

I jerk. Shell, I can smell the disinfectant. "Payhe," Red's tone is warning. "Ivyyr va." I nuzzle my face deeper into his neck. Don't think of it. Just don't think. Shell… for once in your life just stop thinking. I'm safe. Nothing is going to happen to me here. I'm safe. Orange swore no one would hurt me down here and I know he's right. I know everyone in this room and none of them will hurt me so I'm going to be alright. That's it… take it easy… breathe in… hold it for the count of three… one… two… three… and let it out.

Wha- Well I wasn't expecting this that's for sure. Last night when Blue hugged me he nuzzled the side of my head. Red has taken an entirely different approach. Instead of nuzzling my head, he's buried his face into my shoulder. Umm… well this is certainly very un-Red. He doesn't show affection very often. He sighs against my skin and his warm breath seems… lulling. Soothing. Red is completely calm and at ease. I absorb it like a sponge and just sink into his arms. I can just barely feel him move his head back and forth against my shoulder. Half nuzzling- half pressing closer to me. I guess he missed me.

"H'd mbcl," Lady's voice whispers gently and I feel Red release my wrist and he clutches me close again. That's okay with me. I hold him just as close. I'm going to be okay. Red's here. Red always has my back. Even if Blue and Orange weren't here, I would be just fine -more then fine- because I know there's no way in shell Red will let anything happen to me. I feel him easing up a little, pulling his head back. I pull away a little bit too and look up at him. Is he mad for me mak- no. He's not mad. He has this gentle smile on his face that I know doesn't appear very often. He release me all the way, giving both my hands a gently squeeze with his own before releasing me completely. Wow, that was nice. I hear a slight noise and look over to see wha-

AAAHHHHH!!

GET AWAY!!

I'm off. Tearing across the room at break neck speeds. Have to go. Have to get away. I hear Orange say that word that means he wants my attention. Yeah well screw you Orange. There is no way I'm stopping till I get somewhere where I know there are no needles. Like my room. I know there are no needles in my room. I head that way. Jump on the wall. Push off. Grab the rail and swing up and over it. Into my room. Where can I hide? I need to hide. There! It's safe under there. I dive for cover right as I hear someone pause a the door to my room.

"Mbc?" Sorry, Orange. I'm not coming out till the needles go away. I hear him take a tentative step into the room. Please, just go away. I just want to be alone for a little while. At least until I can stop trembling like a jackhammer.

"Dhnilepcjleb," Rat's voice echoes from the floor below. "Elw ihd ylxw." Orange pauses as if he's torn between what to do before heaving a little sigh and stepping back out of the room. Thank the shell… a few minutes alone.

I pull the blanket tighter about me. Wow, talk about acting like a kid. I hid under the covers. I guess that's not as embarrassing as hiding under the bed but still… Okay, don't think about that. I don't need to worry about my self esteem anymore. Between bawling into Orange's shoulder and having a near pani- okay having a panic attack over a needle still in it's sterilized package on a table, my self esteem is low enough. I bury my face into my pillow. I wish Red was in here. I hope I didn't hurt his feeling when I bolted like that. I yawn. I'll go apologize to him. In a minute…

"Mbc?" huh? Wazzit? I yawn and blink my eyes open. Where's all the light? I turn my head slightly. Oh there it is. Why is it diffused like that? It's like I'm looking through a bla- "Mbc?" oh. I guess I was looking through a blanket. One that Blue just pulled off my head. He's smiling at me as I blink up at him sleepily. When did I fall asleep? How long have I been asleep? I yawn and sit up, leaning back against the headboard. I rub at my eyes as the bed dips down. Blue's just sitting there watching me wake up with that fond smile on his face. Does he like watching me when I'm half asleep or something?

When I'm looking more awake he reaches over and plucks something of the table next to my desk. What is this? I look down at the mug he's handed me and smile. Of course. Tea. Probably laced with chamomile like it was last night. I really don't think I need to calm down anymore but anything that'll help me sleep is appreciated right now. I feel like I could sleep for the next three years. "Mbc?" I look at him over the rim of my mug. He points to me and then gives me and okay sign with a questioning look. What a mother hen. I smile and nod my head yes while yawning. He seems amused, pointing first at the mug and then at me. Yeah. Yeah. I'll drink it. Is he going to sit there until I drink the whole thing? I chuckle at that. Yeah he will. It's what he does.

If I have a big brother somewhere, I hope he's like Blue.


	13. Chapter 13: A Cornerstone for Thought

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Sorry about the delay, a little thing called 'life' got in my way and it definitely wasn't a box of cereal. Actually I kind of wish it was just a box of cereal. I decided to be nice because of this delay so if ground breaking is what you as the readers want, here's a good one… and a long one. Sorry about the length but I couldn't find a way to break this off any where and still have it make sense. _

_And no, Splinter's last line wasn't supposed to be legible in the previous chapter. I went back and fixed that and several other mistakes schattered through out the chapters. I'll try and prof read better from now on._

Chapter Thirteen: A Cornerstone for Thought

I've learned so much in the past few days, I'm beginning to realize what I've lost. And I've lost a lot. First off, I've lost all memories of who these mutants are that have been helping and taking care of me. I know I know them, I just… don't know them. It's so weird to try and describe this feeling of lost. I can't imagine what it's putting them through. Knowing who I am and me having no clue of what's even going on around me has to be hard for them. Second, is just that. I don't know who I am. I don't even know how I should act around them. The term 'just be myself' comes to mind but I don't even know that. There is only one thing I have learned one thing over the course of tonight.

Apparently, I'm a terrible insomniac.

I raise an eye ridge at the ceiling above me, seriously this is ridiculous. Even with the exhaustion from the panic I had earlier and the chamomile has done little to help with this minor annoyance. Shell, I'm making this sound like a paper cut. I really don't want to know but I glance over at the LED clock on the other side of the room. Shell. I was afraid of that. It's two. In the morning. That means I've been staring blankly at the ceiling for the past two hours trying to fall back asleep. I wonder what I did when I had insomnia before I lost my memory. That, of course, leads me back to trying to figure out who I am with no actual clue as to… who I am. I sigh in frustration. This is really getting annoying.

I stare back up at the ceiling. How many times have I laid here trying to fall asleep staring at that same ceiling? How many nights have I laid here in this bed? With these blankets and pillow? In this room? In my home? How many times have I laid here listening to the snores coming from down the hall? How many times tonight have I though of those same questions even though I know they have no answer? About sixteen, I think. Nice to know I can answer at least one question.

I roll onto my side and stare out across the room. Where did I pick up so many knick knacks? Why did I bring them here and start dissembling them anyways? Is that what I do in my free time? Take things apart? See how they work? What makes them tick? I'm kind of glad my… demolition techniques seem to be focused on inanimate objects. I think I would ever want to know about myself if there was a –oh, I don't know- cadaver laying on that big table instead of bits and pieces of electronic gizmo and gadgets. Oh great, another headach-

Wait! That's it! The headaches! I bolt upright in bed. The headaches only seem to be generated when I'm trying to remember something so that means that me getting a headache is a good thing. It means I'm trying to remember something! Sweet! That would also make sense with whatever was done to me. I have some form of chemical induced amnesia and the headache could be my body –actually mind- attempting to remember something that the drugs are blocking. Hmmm… it makes sense… so all I would have to do is ignoring the headache and keep focusing on whatever it is that triggered the headache and –theoretically- my mind will eventually be able to beat out the drug and I'll remember whatever. However, this could be after I've gave myself a migraine. Even one of those would be worth learning something about myself.

I drop my hand from where my finger had been curled around my chin and untangling myself from the bedding, throwing them off to the side. A part of me is overjoyed with the prospect of figuring something out. Okay, that's a little weird. Do I like to figure stuff out? Yes, I'm getting a headache. This is probably the only time I have ever been happy to have one too. What was I trying to figure out? Whether I liked to take stuff apart? My headache seems to be just barely sharper when I thought that last sentence. Now how do I figure out more about myself?

I could start pla- umm… working with some of the gadgetry over there. Shell, stupid blankets! How on earth did they become so wrapped around my legs?! Oh yeah, Blue 'tucked' me in tonight. Gotta love that turtle. I pad quietly across the floor and turn on the lights. Ow, my eyes… Blue left the door part way open too. Better close that before I wake someone up. I have no idea how noisy I'm going to be –hopefully not too noisy that I wake up Red- and so no one sees this light and tries to make me go back to bed. If I'm going to be awake all night then I would like to be doing something semi constructive.

Now what button do I press first? Heh, okay grow up here. You trying to figure out who you are, not how many lame jokes you can come up with. Okay this is a… something. And this piece here is… another something. This is… what is this thing? It looks like part of the heating coil found in toasters. Oh, there's the rest of the toaster. Did someone blow this thing up?! Orange. It had to be Orange. Poor toaster, did he put fireworks in it or something? It's in almost fifteen pieces! Yes, he did put fireworks in it. This is definitely some of the papery shell that goes on firecrackers. I don't even want to know why he decided to put firecrackers in here. Why do I have a feeling that I was in the process of trying to put this back together? Actually I think scraping it for parts and buying another is the only thing that could be done for this appliance.

Okay, so I have parts to a toaster on here. Those are several computer fans that look fried. This is… a bunch of wire, able to carry about fifty volts each. I don't want to know why these ends are frayed. That's a computer's mother board from a Dell by the looks of it. I can't really tell. A stereo system that looks like Red kicked across the room. He probably did to. Is that why he has a new one in there? Here's an iron. Why a bunch of turtles that don't need clothes need an iron I have no idea. Maybe Rat uses it on his robe or something. There's a killer tangle of wires, several adaptors and I think this is a space heater but it looks like I was I the process of completely tearing it apart. It's 'guts' are strewn across the table.

Well, that did absolutely nothing. My headache has remained a constant but I have learned that I can at least dissemble electronic devices and repair them. Or try to. I guess I did learn that Orange has the ability to blow up innocent appliances with firecrackers but that has nothing to do with who I am. Now what? This didn't work like I thought. Maybe instead of focusing my thoughts on one thing I should focus it on many. What else can I do? Hmmm… I can fight. Maybe I should work on that and it will jog my memory on who I am.

My eyes run over the room as I think. I really can't fight in here. Someone is going to hear me. I could go down to the rumpus room. That is what the room seems to be designed for. It does have a large variety of weapons so it's not like I could really run out of options. I would rather have my weapon. I wish I kn- Hey! My bo! When did that show up because I don't remember it leaning next to the door earlier. I take the slim piece of wood in my hands. Yep, it's mine. I tuck it over my shoulder and down into the back of my belt. Now that I have my weapon I just have to get downstairs without waking anyone.

I cringe as my door squeaks open. Did anyone hear that? I stay still, barely breathing as I listen to the noises echoing through the lair. I don't hear anyone stirring. The snores are still coming in an even pace. I let out a breath of air. I'm so glad no one caught me out here. Orange might let me stay up but he wouldn't let me go into the rumpus room. Red probably would have dragged me into my room and if I tried sneaking out again I don't doubt that he would tie me to the bed. Blue would make me more tea and then sit on the edge of my bed till I went back to sleep. As if I could fall back asleep right now. If I'm right about this then I might be able to figure out who I am tonight.

I pause as I tip-toe past Orange's door. I should cut my losses. After all this really isn't a one hundred percent sure idea here. It's more like grasping at straws. I bite my lip as I look toward the open door next to me. Judging by Blue's reaction to me grabbing his swords, it's not a good idea to try and take their weapons away from them. Still… maybe… even if I can't learn about myself tonight I should still try and at least remember something. If I can remember at least one of them I'll feel much better. Right now if I can remember anything I'll be happy. Well, other then Foot ninjas beating the pants off me. I could have lived without knowing that.

Okay so all I have to do is sneak into their individual rooms and grab their weapons without them noticing. This should be a piece of cake. I just have to sneak into three highly trained ninja warriors' rooms and swipe their personal weapons… Why do I have a bad feeling I'm going to be caught?

Orange's room is still a pigsty, nothing new there. Where would he keep his… things? I wish I knew what they were called. I step around one of the piles of something and glance quickly towards the bed. The only part of Orange I really can see is one foot hanging over the side. The rest of the bed is a massive pile of blankets that kind of shift back and forth now and then. I guess that means he is at least breathing. I think I would be suffocating under all those blank- There they are. Those chained sticks are hanging over the headboard on his bed. Now all I have to do is get to them with out waking Orange.

I slip up next to the bed, avoiding all the piles that I'm pretty sure have all moved since I was in here last. I need a few more inches so I can remove the chains from where they are hanging fro the bed. If I try and pull them off now I could rattle the bed and wake Orange up. I want to avoid that. Using the supports on the end of the bed –and avoiding the banana peel hanging on it- I give myself the few extra inches needed. I can now look over the mattress and see Orange laying on his stomach clutching his teddy bear close.

Awww… he's so cute. I can help but smile as I watch him sleep. He looks so young, almost like a little kid. Well that makes sense, he acts like one too. I gently pull one of his weapons from the bed trying to make as little noise as possible. One down and one to go. Just as I'm about to pull it free, Orange mumbles, "Mbc…" Oh shell, he's awake! I look towards his face to see that his eyes are still closed. He's still asleep? "Mbc," he mutters again and turns he head into his teddy bear nuzzling it slightly. I sigh in relief as I pull the finally weapon off and tuck it into my belt next to the other one. I stay there for a moment just watching him sleep before I climb down and leave.

Red's weapons are going to be hard to get a hold of. He sleeps with them in his belt. How come he's never stabbed himself with them? Or has he and I just don't remember? I'm standing next to his hammock watching him sleep as I try to figure out how I'm going to be able to get them with out waking him up. At least I don't have to worry about him hearing me. He's making so much noise snoring that an elephant could be doing jumping jacks in the main room and he still wouldn't hear it.

I'm going to have to do this fast. There's no other way around it. Just grab the hilt and pull it out. Hopefully Red won't wake up when I do this. Good thing is that I should be able to out run him. His blankets are tangled around his legs and spilling down onto the floor. That'll keep him busy long enough for me to run like mad for my room. Or maybe into Blue's room, he'll keep Red from killing me. Okay, let's do this. Steady…Steady… and… Now! My hand darts out, lightly grabs the hilt and slides the weapon free in one swift movement all without Red so much as moving an inch. Oh yeah… who's the turtle? I tuck the weapon into my already laden belt and reach for the next pick.

Whoa! I jerk my hand back and breathe a sigh of relief. Red is still grumbling under his breath. Just as I had been reaching for the next toy he had growled and lashed out. His open hand had nearly closed around my wrist. That had been close. "Mbcchl…" is he talking in his sleep too? "Tipw rp mb wb ihd… Dpfl rbv apr…" Yup, I guess he is. He starts snoring again and this time I reach over and swipe the second pick without him so much as flinching.

This is going to be really hard. I know how much Blue values his swords and that he's not that big on sharing them from his reaction earlier today. Actually it was yesterday. I gulp as I stand just outside his doorway. He also has an uncanny ability to know who is sneaking up on him. It boarders on spooky. Supernatural. Still… if I want to learn anything tonight I have to have his swords. I slip into the room searching for the swords as I crouch near the door. Where are they? Where are they? Couldn't he had made this easy and hung them on the wall with the rest of his swords? No of course-

There?! He put them there?! I lick my lips nervously. Not only am I going to have to get up close to Blue without waking him but I'm going to have to slide the swords away from his hand. I can see the logic of hiding the sword there. Anyone who didn't know him that well would think he was just laying on his stomach with one hand trailing over the bed. However, if you're crouched down like I am you can clearly see both his swords hilts resting barely a millimeter from his finger tips. Good strategy. Just like Blue to be overprotective even in his sleep.

Now, how am I going to do this without waking him up? I'm going to have to be silent… quick… okay, this sucks. He's going to know I'm taking his swords no matter what I do. Maybe if I swap them out he won't notice? It's worth a shot. I take one of the katanas hanging from the wall and quietly sneak up on the bed. Please, don't wake up. Please, don't wake up. I don't even want to think about what Blue would do to me if he woke up when I am standing over him with a katana and various other weapons in my belt making me look like a Rambo-want-a-be. He would probably go Chuck Norris on me and I wouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon. Not without having a wheelchair at least or –and more likely- an entire trauma care unit following me around.

I kneel next to the bed and slowly slide his katanas away from his fingers. He whimpers slightly and his fingers seem to strain after the hilts as a frown begins to cross his forehead. Shell, not good. I place the other katana as quickly and silently as I can where his once were. His fingers lightly touch against the hilt and his face relaxes again. I gentle sigh escapes his lips. I slip backwards keeping my eyes on him. There, just stay asleep Blue. That's it. Nothing has changed in the past few minutes.

I don't breath a sigh of relief until I step into the darken rumpus room. Wow, what a way to start a night. I feel like I was just poking an angry lion with a stick. I shut the sliding door before turning on the lights. I don't want to wake up Rat. As far as I can figure his room is right next to this one and if his hearing is anything like a normal rat's hearing is he'll probably hear me through the wall. I'm going to have to be very quite for this. Carefully, I lay all the weapons out right in front of the bench including my bo which is at the end of the line. I really don't want to break their weapons, as it is I'm going to be in enough trouble for stealing them in the first place, so I'll be as gentle as possible with them for now. What am I saying? I've seen those guys fight with them and they were anything but gentle with them.

The first weapon up is Orange's weird stick and chains. He spins them around by rotating his wrist. I spin them both lazily in my hands trying to get a feel for them. This can get really tiring fast, I wonder if that's why Orange always seems ready to fly off the handle. He's probably just really hyper or something which gives him more then enough energy to use these things. I flip the sticks up and catch them before quickly snapping them back up and under each arm pit. Ow, that kind of hurt.

Nunchaku. That's what these things are called. It is believed to have originally come from China and entered Japanese culture from the island of Okinawa. It's a difficult weapon to wield that is hard to block against because of all the unexpected angles that the chained middle can provide. The centrifugal force caused by spinning the weapon help to increase the force in a strike. It also blurs where the weapon is and makes it difficult to block because the opponent is more distracted by trying to focus on the weapon. I run my fingers over the wooden sticks, yup, they're traditional Japanese style nunchakus. The Chinese version is more rounded in the sticks while the Japanese version is actually cut more like a hexagon. The flat edges can cause more damage then the rounded version when it hits.

I step slightly away from the other weapons to gain some more room to wield these things. I would hate to trip and fall on Blue's sword or something. Then I would really get it. Take a breath to center myself… close my eyes… relax… now… Strike!

The trick with a nunchaku is maintaining its speed. Once the centrifugal forces begin to decrease the weapon becomes easily seen and therefore easily deflective. If spun too rapidly, though, it can injure the user instead. I'd almost say it was purely luck that allowed Orange to fight with these things and not injure himself. He doesn't seem mature enough to recognize the thin line between injury and effectiveness. I guess I have to give him some credit. He has mastered the use of a very spontaneous and unpredictable weapon.

I had flipped both nunchakus out from under my arms and spun them in both hands during my observation. Now that I have some kind of idea on the balance of these things let's see if I can get this right without hurting myself. I bring both of them forward as if I was going to attack an invisible enemy in front of me. Whoa! Okay, that was a bad idea. I nearly took my head off with these things. I catch the other baton and then just look at the two weapons in each hand. How on earth can Orange fight with these things and not kill himself in the process?

I set one off to the side and go back out into the center of the room. I flip it up and over my shoulder, catching the opposite end as it swings around my arm. There, much better. I bring the nunchaku back over my shoulder and swing it downward in a massive arc as if I was striking someone in the shoulder. The baton bounces off my shell –thankfully I have one or that could have hurt- and I swing it back across my 'opponent's' stomach. I quickly follow that up with a kick and punch as the nunchaku spins in my right hand effortlessly. I whip it back in front of me a lot like an uppercut and catch the other end in the opposite hand as if I'm blocking a weapon. I let go of it with my right hand and flip the baton over the top of my left hand and before twirling it through my fingers. Finally I catch the end. I think I've gotten the hang of this.

I stand there for a moment just staring at the nunchaku. In a way they're a lot like their owner. Fast. Spontaneous. Unpredictable. I could go on and on with the words used to describe the two of them. Still everything that I can remember about Orange points to the fact that he's a fun loving, carefree kind of guy. Err… turtle. He's nice and loveable just like the kind of guy that would make the perfect little brother. Ugh… a surge of pain rushes through my head and makes my headache a little stronger. Brother… sounds so familiar. Is he my brother? A name dances on the tip of my tongue. A nick name? Begins with an 'M'…

And just like that it's gone.

"Shell," I say out loud to the empty room around. I turn and walk back over to the weapons laying on the floor and return the nunchaku to its partner. I was so close to remembering Orange's real name too. I sigh. Talk about disappointing. Come on, I got to be able remember something here. Okay, it's okay. I'll remember something by the end of the night. I've got to. This not knowing anything is really driving me nuts.

I pick up the pick things that Red wields. As I walk out to the middle of the room I twirl them lazily around my fingers. Where the tsuba and the handle come together it makes a perfect for spinning the weapon in my hands. I pick up the pace a little spinning them both faster. This is so cool. I quickly grab the handle. Umm… whoops. Well one of them is pointing upward like it should but the other has the baton laying down along my forearm. This looks familiar. I switch my fingers so that the handle comes right up between my fingers. That's better.

Sais. That's what these are. A defensive weapon that can be switch back and forth to be used both lethally or non-lethally. The weapon is definitely used for short range. Red can either stab an opponent with the baton or punch them with the hilt of the sai. Considering what I saw of how Red fights it would make sense. He is definitely a brawler. He's one of those fighters that like to get up close and personally with their opponents and out muscles them. Red certainly has the muscles to do that too. I smirk as I twirl the sais around my fingers again. I catch them but this time so that both of the hilts are coming up between my fingers. It's time to put these things through their paces.

Left stab. Right jab. Sweep kick. Left arm block. I flip the right sai to the more deadly end and stabbing out with it. Back fist strike with the left hand. Round house kick. I flip the left sai around as well. I bring the right sai around in a slash then the left now my arms are crossed and over the opposite shoulder. Bring them down making an 'x' in the air in front of me. Stab both of them forth and then outwards. If that had hit anyone it would have left a mark. I twirl the sais in both hands and- oops. The one that had been in my right hand skates across the floor, bouncing slightly on the mats. Hmmm… these things fly pretty good. I glance at the bulls-eyes against the far wall, bet I could hit that. I toss the sai up in the air, catch the baton and hurl it like a knife across the room. A dull 'thunk' comes from the bulls-eye. I think I might have hit the center! I half run to the other side of the room. Nope, I didn't hit the center but I did come pretty close.

I pull the weapon from the target and walk over to where the other one lays on the mats. I don't have the required finesse for two handed weapons I guess. Yeah I was able to wield the two sais longer then the nunchakus but I was too slow. I felt like I was fumbling when I switch the sais back and forth. When I was spinning them they didn't look like they were going half the speed of what Red spins them at. Red… I can see why he uses this kind of weapon now. They're perfect for an up close fighter like him. I set the sais down and reach for Blue's katanas. Red and Blue are some much alike. They both act like over protective big brothers that each shows their own concern in different ways, one with gruff anger and the other with gentleness. Kind weird actually. Maybe they're twins?

This might be a bad idea. Considering my track record with the nunchakus and the sais, trying to wield two katanas would be asking my own klutziness to chop off my hand. I pick up one of the swords instead. This would be the better of the two options. I like my hands right where they are thank you and other parts of my anatomy as well. I walk back out into the middle of the room looking at the sword in my hand. What a deadly weapon but I guess that can be said about all of these weapons. Even my bo. However, a weapon is only as deadly as the one who use it.

That stops me. Someone once said that to me. Who was it? I tilt the sword back and forth causing the light to dance off it. Blue definitely keeps his blades polished. I wonder how often he cleans them. I can just see him sitting there in front of that paper screen rubbing a cloth over the edge of the blades. He keeps them in top condition just like himself. He trains to always be ready for anything that may attack us.

Us. Who's 'us'? I frown as I look at my reflection in the highly polished steel. We're all different from humans. We're bipedal, humanoid turtles. It would make sense we would have to protect ourselves. I bet we would make the ultimate trophy for a big game hunter or a prize specimen for a scientist. Blue has to be the guardian angel of the group. The one who is always there to ward off… whatever there is that is attacking. And why can I see Red as the one to run straight at it and open up an entire can of shell?

I lift the blade and hold it lightly in one hand. It doesn't feel right to hold it like this. I bring the katana in front of me and hold the hilt in both hands. I take a single deep breath. I don't have to center myself with this weapon as much as the other two. Maybe because it is a lot like my bo. Long and sturdy but I'm only going to be able to hold it on its one end. Okay, I can put my weight behind the dulled edge to help ward off an attack but other then that there is no way I'm going to be able to swing the hilt around to attack with. I'd slice my fingers to ribbons.

Back to the matter at hand, I snap the sword up in a basic block. A flick of the wrists and now it's down against the invisible opponent's side. Hop back. Spin kick. Block to the left. I let go of the sword with my right hand and lash out, punching another 'opponent' before I sweep the blade around me in a wide arc. Catch it in both hands again and drive it forward like I was stabbing someone. I withdraw the blade and duck down, dodging an invisible attack from behind. Balance all my weight on my left foot and use the right to take out whoever came up behind me. I dip the tip of the sword down letting it slice through the air right about where someone's throat would be. I come up out of the spin and catch the blade in both hands again. Upper block then bring the sword down in an arc to sweep the imaginary blade away from my stomach. Snap kick to finish 'him' out.

I stand there for a moment panting. Yeah, I definitely can wield a single katana better then a sai or nunchaku but… I just… I don't know… It just doesn't feel right to me. I look down at the sharpen blade in my hand. I can use it very effectively but I just don't think I like to use it. I really didn't like using the sais either. Or the nunchaku's. Even though I know all weapons are considered deadly I just don't like using these. It's so easy to kill someone with them. At least with the bo I won't kill anyone as long as I don't strike their head with any kind of force. Even the thought of taken someone's life gives me the shiv-

That's it! I don't like to kill people! I learned something else about myself! And my head aches a little more then it had before! Sweet! Now I'm getting somewhere. This is probably the only time I've ever been glad to be in pain. I walk over and set the sword down next to its partner before picking up my bo. At least now I know why I fight with a bo. Bo staffs are primarily a defensive weapon designed to keep an opponent away from the bo's user to prevent injuries. I flip the bo over the back of my hand a few times. Yeah, definitely can see why I prefer to carry around this weapon more then the others.

Orange was a lot like his nunchakus I wonder if my personality is a lot like my bo? Errr… I wonder what that would be. Does a bo staff even have any kind of character trait? It's really just a long pole, a simple piece of wood. Wait… am I simple? No. No way. That's impossible. How could I have taken those things apart in my room and what about all those chemicals and schematics in my room? I have to be smarter then the average turtle to come up with all that. And what about the computer array I built from scratch and my workshop? How the shell could I have built the lair from the ground up if I wasn't something other then a genius?

OW! Shell, my head! I plant the tip of my bo into the mats to help me keep my balance while the other hand holds onto my throbbing skull. Shell… at least the pain seems to be receding a little bit. That was so painful I almost threw up. I can still taste the bile in the back of my throat. I would do it again – and I have a feeling I'm going to do it again with other memories- to remember what I just had remembered.

I'm considered a genius. I built the lair from the ground up using discarded parts that I found in dumpsters and junkyards to make it the home we all live in today. I work constantly to maintain a security system that makes the one at Fort Knox look like a joke. If we need it or could use it here in the lair it's my job –no, that's not right- my hobby to figure out how to make it work or invent it. I have a server mainframe on the other side of the lair that could easily hack into the United States Defense network in less then a minute. Wait, those computers I saw… was it only yesterday? Yeah, it was only yesterday. Those must be mine. The workshop is right there too. I head for the doors, time to go see if those will help me remember anything more about myself.

Out the dojo's doors and across the main room, I half run half walk to where I saw the monitors and computer. Shell, she's a beauty. I lean my bo again a wall before walking over to the towers. I never could find a case big enough for her so I just linked her through several towers to help keep the dust off the sensitive equipment stored inside. I turn towards the wall of monitors. I set her up so that she could be running up to seven programs at different times or the same time all on different screens. The monitors on the top row and side rows have a very special feature. I can activate all the security cameras I have lined the sewers around our home with so that way I can detect any unwanted visitors before they come knocking on the front door.

I sit down in the swivel chair located directly in front of the screens. Ohhh… It's comfy. I wonder how many times I have sat in this chair all day typing away. I wonder how many times I have fallen asleep in this chair. Probably more then I can count which is pretty high when you consider the nth's power of numbers. I trail my fingers along the two keyboards attached to the chair's arm rests. I really out did myself on these. Not only do they have a pair of joysticks instead of mice but their on a swivel base so I can turn either one of the two around in front to of me or even off to the side. I could be sitting here working on something and have someone next to me working on a different project with the other keyboard.

I twist one of the keyboards around and jiggle the joystick. The black screens flicker and then all come up a dark shade of blue with a password box sitting in the middle of the screens. At least I think it's a password box. It looks like one so I should just be able to type in my user name and password. Errr… I wish I knew what they were. I look down at the keyboard. I can't even read this. The letters are all jumbled together. I sigh and rub at my aching skull. At least I know that I own this amazing machine, I'll worry about the password and what's on it later.

Now it's time to find the workshop.

I leave the small nook that houses my computers and what I think is every extension cord this side of New Jersey. The floor in here is littered with them! Considering how often I was falling when I first woke up it's a miracle that I haven't landed on my face yet. I knock my fist on the wooden bookshelf as I walk by. Don't want to jinx my luck now.

I glance over at the large table that Lady has spread out all those books on. Wonder if looking at the picture will help jog my memory or something. I flip through the pages of several of the large texts always keeping my hand on the page she had the book open to. The last thing I want to do is impede on her research. I still can't read any of the passages in the books or notes that she has taken but unlike last time I flipped through the books I can tell that she's researching brain functions under the influence of drugs. Has to be hard for her to figure out what's going on with me though. All these books are on human anatomy and I may have some human traits but I bet that I don't have any genetic connection to humans. I hope she knows that. If not she may accidentally poison me trying to help me.

I leave the books after a moment. Nothing new has changed with my headache so I guess that that was a worthless detour. Well not really. At least now I know where Lady is in her research. I enter a small door setting between the computer nook and table. I'm kind of surprised that no one locked the door. After the little explosion upstairs I figured that they would have locked me out of my lab. The more dangerous chemicals are kept in here under electronic lock so no one –cough, Orange, cough- would start messing with them. I hate to think of the damage he would cause with sodium hydroxide or sulfuric acid.

Wow. Just wow. How else can I explain this place? It's like I died and went to techno geek heaven. I walk through the room just staring in awe at the assortment of parts and projects that I've completed and stored on the shelves that line two of the four walls. Another wall is has a work bench against it with tools sorted by type on the shelves and bins below with a cork board behind it holding more tools that are hanging and awaiting use. There's a bunch of plastic coffee jars hanging from a wooden overhang against the ceiling. Are those screws? I reach up and unscrew one, yup, they're screws. I even wrote what the screw is made of and its size on the bottom and side of the container.

I put the jar back up on the ceiling and walk towards the wall off to the left of the door. It' actually more like a small nook in the wall that has shelves to help make it deeper and block it off from the rest of the room. I barely even have to look at what's sitting on the shelving to know what it is. It's the best I can do to make a medical facility for us. Most of the instruments I had made myself to work exactly like the instruments found in hospitals. I look over the equipment lining the shelves and then at the three gurneys that sit against the wall. I don't even want to think of any of the mutants laying on one of those beds but I know I've seen it while I was working to save their lives, mend bones and stitch up injuries. It feels like the temperature has dropped by a few more degrees in here. I turn and hastily walk out of the room. This side room gives me the creeps.

The last part of the room I haven't looked at is the center of the room covered by a large trap. Let's see what this is. I flip it back an- Shell… It's the bike I've been designing. It's barely even half complete but you have to admire it. It's going to be one sweet ride. I'm actually kind of jealous that this is for Red. I want one. I guess I'm going to have to work on making one for myself after this. Shell, I'll make one for Blue and Orange too. Actually, it might be a better idea –and safer- if Orange rode behind one of us or in a side car.

I run my fingers over the frame. Yeah, this bike is going to be awesome. Despite the fact I know my little modification to the bike could result in a bad ending, Red's going to love it. He always wanted to go faster and push the envelope of crazy stop-your-heart kind of stunts and now he can. Putting the nitrous adaptors and capability into the engine wasn't the hard part, giving the bike enough satiability to operate at those speeds weren't. As it is I'm worried that when the feed first kicks in the handle bars will jerk out of his grasp and send him flying off the bike. And I don't even want to think of the brakes being applied. If he so much as taps them going at that speed the bike would start flipping end over end. Considering he hates wearing a helmet and half the time I have to fight with him to put one on, I don't think he would survi-

-_"-vive!"_

"_Would you calm down?! You're giving me a headache!"_

"_Both of you knock it off and let him focus!"_

_Right. Focus. Come on, this isn't that hard. You've read about bombs and their construction on the internet thousands of times. This is just like one of those times. Don't think that the device that you're up to your elbows in is a bomb and you'll be aright. Shell, I knew I shouldn't have thought that. Okay, just find the wire connecting the charge to the detonator. I glance quickly at the bomb's timer- Shell! Less than a minute?! Okay, don't look at the clock. You have all the time in the world. Come on, you can do this. Sweat trickles down my forehead and the side of my face. Ignore that! Focus on the task at hand. Yes! The green wire! I place the wire cutters carefully and snip the wire…_

… _and the clock stops._

_I let out a sigh of relief and say to those behind me, "It's deactivated."_

"_Alright! That's what I'm talki-"-_

Wha? I've fallen over, landing hard on my hip. I force myself to hands and knees before stumbling awkwardly to my feet, catching the workbench to help me stay on my feet. I'm glad I've remembered something else about myself but I'm kind of disappointed I didn't learn anymore. Shell, my head feels like Shred-

-_I charge forward. I have to draw his attention at least until back up arrives. I can hear them struggling to get out of the fallen debris. It's still going to take time. Time that we don't have. I move swiftly and silently. Shredder is still intent on his victim. He doesn't realize I wasn't caught in the scaffolding collapse and that is the only advantage we have at this moment. I catch sight of Shredder marching towards him as he struggles to rise but not having the strength or coherent though back enough to know he needs a few minutes to recover. He may not like to admit it but he's getting old and his body can't sustain this type of abuse like we can. There has been so many times that he has jumped in and taken the hit for one of us, it's time I took a hit for him. _

_Shredder doesn't even see me coming. I was so close to him when I bounded out of the shadows that I head him gasp and mumble a Japanese curse under his breath. I don't give him the time to act if I did I would be dead. That was the trick to surviving a fight with the Shredder, don't stop unless you absolutely have to and don't give him a chance to attack you. The second option is easily the harder of the two but this time I have the drop on him._

_I swing my bo with more force then necessary right at his helmet. I'm not doing this out of anger –okay, maybe I'm a little upset- but instead out of physics. If I'm right the force will- yes! My bo vibrates painfully in my hands as it shatters right into his eyes. The helmet may protect his head from most attacks but in this case it only acted to help snap the bo and sends splinters of wood flying into his unprotected eyes. It's sad that I broke my bo but his scream of pain and rage more than makes up for the lost of my weapon. Now that he's blind I can go see how Spl-_

_Shell! My wrist is caught in an unyielding grip and, before I can even try to free it, a fist cracks against the side of my head. I stumble off to the side, the hand keeping its grip on me, following where I am. I may have blinded him but as long as the Shredder still has a grip on me I'm one dead turtle. I twist my wrist savagely, trying to rip myself free from him. I wish I hadn't dropped the rest of my bo, I could sure as shell use it right about now! He tries to punch me again but I block it with my forearm, knocking it away from me. Shell, he's-_

_I scream. Shell, that hurts! A loud pop echoes from my shoulder but that does little to help block out the pain. The snap kick to my armpit combined with the sudden downward jerk of my wrist was all that was required to dislocate my shoulder, bad by the feeling of it. He doesn't give me a chance to do anything more then that. He's pulling on my injured arm causing muscles and tendons to stretch beyond their limits and rip. I feel myself scream again as he throws my effortlessly through the air. I hit the ground hard, swallowing another scream as I finally come to a rolling stop. Instead I whimper as I clutch my injured arm to my stomach._

"_If you are so eager to die first, turtle, I will be more than happy to oblige." I hear him sneer as he stumbles towards me. Oh shel-_

Unnn… I don't feel to good… I think I mi-

-_The wielding arc dies down as I cut the power to it. I blow on the cherry red metal in front of me. With the casing done I can now-_

"_Don?" I blink and look over my shoulder. Now what did he do? He looks guilty. "Ummm… I think I broke it…"_

_Oh shell, now what did he break? I set my visor aside and walk over to him. "Do I even want to know?" I ask as I look past him and out into the lair. Shell… he didn't… Aww crud he did. "And do I even want to know why there's a huge hole in the TV screen and half of its parts strewn across the living room?"_

_He gives me a timid smile, "Ummm… No?"_

_I sigh. I knew he was going to say that. I don't even have to go take a closer look at the poor appliance to know there's no way I'm going to be able to fix it. "Clean up that mess while I pick up in here and then we're both going to the junkyard to get a new one before someone notices your little mistake."_

_He gives my one of his award winning smiles and punches me lightly in the arm. "Have I ever told you that you are seriously the turtle, Don?"_

_I feel a smile spread across my face. "This month? Four hundred and sixty nine times, I believe."-_

-ght puke! I stumble to the trash can and throw up. Least I didn't get any on me or the floor or the work-

_-He did… I can't believe he actually got me one. I know I've been asking for it and trying to put together one of my own when we're scavenging but for him to actually give me one for my birthday? Even though he's always telling me to leave the electronics I bring home alone and pulls me away from the circuit breaker in the lair every time I get curious about it. I can't… this is just so unreal. He actually gathered together a ton of extra tools and put them into a large metal tool box for me. I lift up the large metal tray and look at the bottom part of the toolbox. I can't believe this. These are all the tools I found in our travels. He must have gone back and gotten them all. For me._

"_I trust that you are happy with you're gift, my son."_

_I stand up and give him the deepest most sincere bow I have ever given in my eleven years of life. "Yes and thank you, Sensei." I say with a slight hitch in my breath. It's not just the fact that he had gathered them all for me after calling them worthless that's causing me to battle against the tears that want to spill out. I can feel the tears begin to well up in my eyes as they begin to win the battle. This is his way of giving me permission to start exploring the technology and science of a world he has been sheltering us from since we were infants. It's like a dream come true. I'm never going to forget this birthday. Ever.-_

Oh shell… stop the ride. I want off… I feel like someone's stabbing me in the back of my head-

-"_Stop moving!" I half scream as he struggles to get up again. Can't he see he's been shot?! Doesn't he see all of his own blood everywhere?! Shell, it's even on me! Does that stop him from trying to rejoin the fight raging nearby? No, of course not. Does he care that his constant attempts to get up are making it more difficult to try and stanch the blood? Nope, he probably would call it a flesh wound and try to shrug it off if I let him. Then fall over dead several minutes from now after bleeding to dead. Well, that may be his plan but I have no interest in seeing him or anyone else under my limited medical care die. _

_He tries to sit up again and I push him back against the brick wall with my shoulder. My hands are keeping the pressure on the wound, working in tangent with the tourniquet a little higher up on his leg. Not that it's appearing to do much good. Both of our bandanas are dark red and I can feel the blood welling up between my fingers steadily. Wish I had my first aid kit or something. He's moving again. I open my mouth ready to tell him to stay put again. Wait. What is he-_

_His arms suddenly wrap around my shell and I find my face bouncing slightly off his shoulder. What the shell did he do that for? I hear the distinct ring of metal on metal followed by a grunt. His other arm is suddenly moving and I hear a pain gasp from behind me and warm liquid splatters against the back of my head and neck. Great as if I wasn't covered enough blood already. Least none of it is mine. "I gottcha back, Donnie." His arms are still wrapped tightly around me. I don't think he's entirely lucid right now as he growls again into my ear. "I gottcha back no matter what happens."-_

I stumble away from the work bench trying to keep my balance and hold my aching head at the same time. Shell. It's pulsing steadily in time with my heartbeat which is racing a mile a minute. Everything is spinning. There's so much going through my head right now… I can't make sense of half of it. I just know I know it all. Somehow… I know what this all is. I'm so dizzy. I need to focus. That's it, focus on pulling yourself back to the preset and stop drowning in the swir-

-_I break the surface, my head snapping upwards and taking in a much needed gasp of air. Turtles have a large lung capacity but I was starting to push it. That single desperate gulp of air is all I get before the waves and undertow suck me back down to the bottom of the tunnel I'm trapped in. I struggle with the cuffs holding me down, trying to find some way to free myself. If I could get my hands free I would easily be sucked out of here and down into the river. The thought of taking a swim in the Hudson isn't very appealing but I can't stay here much longer. It's a battle and a half to get to the surface to get a breath of air and that's only if I'm lucky. If I don't get out of this turbulent run off soon, I'll drown._

_Wait! What's that? Something else is caught in the runoff too. Well, not as caught as me but still rushing down the tunnel at incredible speeds as the water sweeps it along. Oh shell, it's going to hit me! The chain holding my wrist to the floor suddenly jerks as he grabs it. Isn't he a sight for sore eyes? He barely even looks at me except for a quick glance at my eyes to see if I'm still awake before raising his katana and striking the chain. Once. Twice. The third time the stubborn metal finally gives and both of us are hurtling along with the flood of water._

_I try to swim, to help him, but my muscles feel dead and my lungs are beginning to burn again. I'm going to need to get up to the surface soon or I'll faint from lack of oxygen and then he'll have to carry me around. Assuming he has a plan for getting us out of the water. I'm guessing he does because he loops my still cuffed wrists over his head and under an arm. I catch at the scarabs on his back and hold on. Please, let this be a good plan. He's never let me down or led me astray before and I hope that this is one of those times._

_He slides his sword away and holds me tight with both hands as the water pushes against us. Shell, I need to breath. I struggle against him slightly trying to pull away from him. I need to take a breath of air, I've waited to long. Crud! You need to let me go. There finally. One of his arms has left my back, now maybe I can get out of here. There's a sudden jerk and it takes my oxygen deprived mind a moment to realize we're slowing down. He's holding onto something. It looks like my bo. Slowly, we move off to the side of the tunnel. He's kicking to try and help whoever is holding the other end of my bo. I should help too but my eyes are darkening around the edges. It's all I can do to hold my breath still and not try to breath in water. GAH! I jerk, trying to cough the water I just swallowed back up in an airless environment. Great now I have more water in my lungs. _

_My head suddenly explodes above the water and I try to cough. Crud, there's so much water in my lungs that I can't breath anyways. I'm hauled out of the water by three people and before he has a chance to slip my arms free I'm hit hard in the shell. Three powerful hits later and the water that had previously been in my lungs are now all over me and his shoulder as it trickles down towards the floor. His grip is no longer restraining and protective but now supportive as my legs try to fold under me. All my strength is ebbing into my lungs as they continue to force out all trace remains of water. Several more thumps on the shell, not half as hard as they had been but still enough to help me expel a little more water with each whack._

"_That's it," he voice is gently saying in my ear. I can barely hear him over my harsh coughs. "That's it. Get it all out. I have you now. You're safe. Just focus on breathing, Donatello, you're alright."-_

A sudden harsh jolt to my knees is my only warning. I'm able to put my arm between my head and the floor cushioning my impact as I fall. At least I didn't knock my head of the floor. It hurts enough as it is. It's like I have the worst migraine in existent right now. Everything is spinning, it's like my brains been put into a blend that's set to puree. I can't think straight anymore. And it's cold. Why is it so cold? My eyes slowly slide shut as a word said by several different voices echoes through my skull.

"_Donatello."_

"_Donatello?"_

"_Donatello!"_

"_Donatello."_

"_Donatello?!"_


	14. Chapter 14: A Thing about Hippos

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Gotta love psychology class. I'm about 95 sure that Donnie's explanation is spot on but there's probably a detail or two that I missed. However, the gist of the idea is there so sit back, read, enjoy, and get a brief insight as to how a memory is formed, retained and remembered._

_And, yeah, it's a short chapter compared to the last couple but I promise to make up for it in the next chapter._

Chapter Fourteen: A Thing about Hippos

Cold…

It's so cold…

Why is it so cold…

I need… to get out of here… it's bad for a turtle to get so cold. My thoughts are fuzzed over… What happened… I was… trying to remember… who I was… had some kind of… seizure… no… it wasn't a muscle spasm… it was in my head… all in my head… can you have a seizure in your mind… was worth it though… I know who I am… I'm Donatello… Donnie… Don… so much has happened to me… is that why I feel so spaced out… did I overload my mind or something… need to pull myself together… have to warm up… it's so cold… so… cold…

…

…

Something echoes through my head but it's to grabble for me to make out. It sounds like the noise is going through water after being admitted from a static filled radio. What is that? I want to look behind myself where the noise is coming from but… I can't move. I'm trying to move, to do something, but my body stays limp. Unresponsive. What the shell? I guess I really did overload my mind if I can't even move. I can't even make my fingers flinch. This sucks.

Ohhh… that feels good. When did I get so cold? I didn't realize how cold I was until that warm hand landed on my shoulder. Okay, I can do without the shaking. My head really hurts. Do I have a concussion or something? It sure feels like it. That noise starts up again first really loud and away from me and then softer. Shell, stop shaking me! I wish I could move. I'm getting sick and tired of my head hurting and the shaking is only aggravating the pain even more.

Huh? Why was I laying face down on the ground? Did I fall or something? My head really hurts. I wonder if I knocked it off the floor. No, it was hurting this bad before I collapsed. Now there are two people with me, one on either side of me, holding me up slightly. I wish I could thank them, being off the floor is a lot warmer. If I didn't respond to the shaking do you really think patting me on the cheek is going to work?

That noise again. Is someone trying to talk to me? I can't understand you, whoever you are. I wish I could. They sound upset. Are they mad at me? The hand has stopped patting my cheek and is resting against my throat. Yes, I am alive. I just can't move and I'm still cold. I hope these guys take me somewhere warm soon. I'm cold blooded and that's never a good thing when mixed with cold air.

Ahh… That's better. Someone's slipped their arms behind my shoulders and under my knees, picking my up and holding me against their chest. Whoever this is, he/she is so much warmer then I am. It's almost painful. I wonder where I'm being taken. That noise again. It's so soft, like someone's whispering or maybe they're just really far away from me. Is the sound echoing? Shell, I wish I could open my eyes so can know what's going on. Twitching my finger would be highly appreciated right now.

I'm not to thrill that you're putting me down, you know that right? At least I'm being set down on something soft. Am I- yup, I'm back on the couch again. Why are they insisting on putting me on the couch when there is a sick bay in my lab? The couch is comfy but all this laying on my right shoulder is beginning to make it hurt. And whoever it was that brought me here is beginning to stand up again. Hello? I'm freezing here and you're warm. Get back here!

I must have made some kind of noise because the person suddenly freezes with his arms half out from under me. I bet that this is Red. He is the only one who can pick me up. I think. There's that noise again. I wonder if he's talking to me. The arm under my leg is freed and the hand gently presses against the side of my face. Come on, Donnie, open your eyes. He's worried about you. Ah-ha! I felt that twitch. Come on you can do it…

Yes! My eyes are open! Now if only I could focus them on something then I would be in business. I can make out this large dark green blur above me centered in a swirling mass of tan and gray. Oooohhhh… I feel sick… better close my eyes again before I puke all over Red. He pats my face twice and says something. Would you cut that out? I'm trying not to puke on you. Another voice joins Red's. I still don't have a clue of what they are saying. Even that gibberish language that they are speaking isn't making it through my muddled head. It all sounds muffled to the point where I can't understand it.

More voices, loud and worried, suddenly echo through the room. Shell, could they turn it down a notch? My head is still throbbing. Maybe I can tell them to shut up? Oh shell, that was too embarrassing. I was trying to say something and all I did was manage to whine. At least it made everyone quite down. Their voices are much softer but still sound worried. What the- Oh… a blanket. Why is it hot? It feels warm. Duh! An electric blanket. Man, I'm so screwed up if I can't even make the connection between a warm blanket and an electric blanket. At least now I'll be warm again.

Hhhmmm… there's a problem I didn't count on. The heat is making me sleepy. It's not a good idea for me to fall asleep with a concussion. Do I have a concussion? I remember catching myself before I hit the floor… kind of. At least I didn't hit as hard as I could have. The hand on my face leaves only to be replaced by another one, this one slightly furry… Rat? "…pwleeb? Mbcpwleeb, dr xbc, npc rbv ilpy dl?" Yeah, it's Rat and he really sounds worried about me.

I really want to sleep. To just shut my eyes and relax sounds so appealing right now but I don't want these guys to worry about me. They have to be important to me if I'm always worried about their well being. I thought Orange was my brother last night maybe they really are my family or something. Ugh… my head hurts again… I need to get them to relax before I pass out again. Shell, I hope I don't do that. I hate being seen as weak in front of them. I know I'm not a good fighter but they don't need to always be babying me. I'm just as tough as they are.

Okay. Ignore the fact that you're tired and open your eyes again. That's it. Slowly my eyes flutter open again and I look up into Rat's furry face. He smiles at me gently, the worry in his eyes dimming slightly. "Dr xbc," his says gently. Who- oh, the turtles are gathered around the couch, watching me with anxious eyes. Red looks like he's going to strangle something. Why is his answer to everything anger? Blue looks so worried he appears younger then he is. How old is he really? He acts like he's going on thirty but I know he's not that old. He's my age maybe a year older at most. Orange looks like he's going to start crying again.

I give him a pain smile that probably looks more like a grimace. I wiggle my hand free from the blanket and give him the okay sign accompanied with a huge yawn. I can tell by everyone's faces how much my hand sign was appreciated. Hopefully that will prevent them from freaking out again. I have a bad feeling this is going to happen again. I feel my eyes begin to flutter shut. Man, I'm tired. I yawn again and close my eyes.

"Xella tlee, dy xbc."

…

…

…

Mmmmmm…..

Ugh…

Hmmm… What?! Crud, can't a turtle get some sleep around here?! I open one eye and give Orange a less then friendly glare. I'm tired. Go away and let me sleep. He just gives me a soft smile. Oh water. I am really thirsty. I guess I should wake up and at least drink something. I need to hydrate at some point. I nod my head and yawn into the pillow. Why am I so tired? Possibly a side affect of the mental overload I went through.

I sit up. Shell, I'm still cold. I pull the blanket around me before taking the offered glass from Orange. I wonder how long I've been asleep. I stop sipping from the glass as catch sight of the display on the DVD player. Three? In the afternoon? Assuming that they found me around seven thirty that means I've been out for the better part of the day. Almost eight hours of sleep. Guess I was making up for my sleepless night last night.

"Ilr Mbcchl." Huh? Oh, Lady is here too. Guess she and Man were called shortly after I was found in the workshop. Orange folds a leg under himself and perches next to me on the couch while Lady sits on the coffee table. I watch as she takes one of my wrists and looks at her watch. My pulse is probably low since I just woke up. She seems relieved. Was my pulse irregular earlier? "Ihx avexl hx cbydpe pjphc ovw il swhee kllex nbem." She looks toward Orange, "Dhflr, pxf ihd hk il'x nbem pcm khcm bvw ibt il'x kllehcj."

"Jbwwnip. Mbc." Huh? Orange points to me and shivers dramatically, complete with crossed arms and chattering teeth. I can't help but snicker at him. What a goob. I hold my finger and thumb close to each other. "Il'x p ehwwel nbem," Orange reports to Lady. He points to me and looks concerned as he gives and okay sign, pointing at it with his other hand. I guess I feel alright. Other then being tired and cold I feel fine. I am kind of hungry. I yawn – really don't have to fake that one- pull the blanket tighter around myself for a moment and then look down at my empty stomach and place a hand over it. "Mbc?" I look back at him and he holds up his hands like he was weighting two things on it. He holds up one hand and then holds his stomach pressing his hand to his mouth as if he was going to be sick. He sits up again and weights the air before holding up the opposite hand and pretending to eat something. I point to the eating option. Now can I go get something to eat?

"Pcm il'x whylm pcm ivcjyr. Bwily wilc wipw il xprx il kllex khcl." Lady doesn't look that happy. She releases a gusty sigh that send her bangs fluttering away from her face. Shell, she's so beautiful. Even when she's frustrated she's gorgeous. She gets up and walks back over to the table where Man and Rat are. Guess they still have no idea on what's wrong with me. "Jlw ihd xbdlwihcj wb lpw pcm wilc wyr pcm jlw ihd wb jb opnf wb xella," she calls over her shoulder. Is there something wrong with her? I turn back to Orange and point to her and then make the okay sign.

He frowns but before he can answer Blue's voice comes from behind the couch. "H'ee dpfl ihd xbdl xbva, rbv wtb flla ihd ptpfl." I glance over the back of the couch to see Blue walking away. Red is waking over and with a huff flops down in the recliner. He places his foot under the back of the remote that is just barely hanging off the end of the coffee table. In one quick motion, flips it up end over end to easily catch it in his waiting hand.

"Payhe? Mhxnbulyr ipx wipw Pkyhnpc themehkl dpypwibc wihcj bc wbmpr, yhjiw?" I don't know who he asked or even what it is but he doesn't wait for an answer before turning on the television and begins flipping through the channels at a dizzying speed. Are all the flashing lights good for me? What if I really did have a seizure? Since I haven't had one yet I doubt if the lights are going to trigger one now.

"Ummm… Tbvemc'w il ypwily tpwni Xnh-kh? Wilr'yl ipuhcj p Xwpy Wylf dpypwibc."

"Wihx hx Mbc tl'yl wpefhcj pobvw ilyl, Dhflr, cbw rbv. Il ehflx wil xibtx tilyl rbv npc elpyc swvkk," Red says as he stops flipping through the channels. Oh, Africa. Looks like a documentary on the wildlife there. Wish I could understand what they are saying. Actually… I think I've seen this exact show before…

"Ovw… Xwpy Wylf wlpnilx rbv pee fhcm bk hdabywpcw xwvkk! Ehfl… Ehfl… ibt wil jvr tlpyhcj ylm petprx mhlx pcm ibt wb xella thwi opyler nepm kldpel pehlcx!" I wonder what Orange is babbling about now. It seems like he's trying to annoy Red and doing a good job at it too. Red looks like he's about to lean over and whack him in the side of the head. Wouldn't surprise me if he did that either. The show is now panning around a watering hole. Elephants, gazelles, zebras, oh my. Now a crocodile needs to explode out of the water or a lion pounce from the tall grass. Actually, scratch that thought about the crocodile attacking. There are hippopotamuses in the water and crocodiles tend to avoid getting near them unless they are starving. Don't blame them. Look at that hippo yawn. Even if they are herbivores I'd hate to see what a bite from one of them looks like.

Wait… hippopotamus… hippo… why does that seem so familiar? Hippo… it's more then just an animal… Shell! That's it! I jump off the couch, blanket and cold body forgotten as I point at the screen. "That's what's wrong with me!" I look at Red and Orange who are staring back at me like I have just gone off the deep end. "Oh come on… it's not that bad," I said to them. "I just figured out what Doctor Saka did to me. The drugs he gave me have distorted my hippocampus."

They are still looking at me like I'm nuts. Guess I'm going to have to explain to them what a hippocampus is. "Look the hippocampus is part of the limbic system and is linked to the processing, storing and retrieval of explicit memories. See, there are two types of memories, explicit and implicit. Explicit memories you have to consciously recall. These are memories about personal experiences and general facts and knowledge. Implicit memories you don't have to consciously recall. These would be motor skills and the cognitive thought processes, like learning and problem solving.

Anyways, with my hippocampus under the effects of the drugs it is having trouble retrieving everything I have previously learned which explains a lot about what is going on with me right now. I've retained my subconscious thought process which is what is allowing me to be able to pull off all those cool ninja tricks and helping me to pick apart this problem because those are stored differently in the brain. However, my hippocampus doesn't remember where my explicit memories are stored and either can't retrieve it or is improperly retrieving it. That explains why I don't recognize anything but as long as I don't consciously think about something I can recognize it."

They still have completely blank looks on their faces. Okay, I'll make it a little easier through an example. "Ummm… Think of it this way. When you form a new memory you make a book about it and a movie. The movie is stored in your subconscious thought so you can recognize and react to different situations with out having to remember the whole memory before hand. The book, which is the entire memory down to the last detail you want to remember, is sent to library which is run by the hippocampus. The hippocampus stores the memory on the shelves and makes a card catalog so when that particular memory is needed it can go retrieve it and give it to the part of the brain that needs it.

The drugs I was given are cause the hippocampus to screw up. The drugs have switched everything around in the card catalog so the hippocampus retrieves the wrong information instead of the right one. It knows where the memories that I have formed after I was given the drugs because the hippocampus has just received the books and knows that their cards in the catalog are right. The headaches I keep getting are when the hippocampus is close to finding the right memory. Last night must have been when the hippocampus was able to figure out a large chunk of the catalog. My brain was unable to process the sudden rush of information so it temporarily shut down my conscious thought which caused my to pass out." I feel a smile spread across my face. Since when did I start pacing back and forth in front of the television? Hm... anyways, "And that my fellow turtles is what is wrong with me in a nutshell."

Why are they still looking at my like I've gone nuts? I know that these two aren't that stupid. How simple do I have to lay it out for them? Should I go find some props act out my explanation next?

"Mhm Mbc gvxw ipul pc lahaipcr buly p ihaababwpdvx?" What did Orange just say?

"Xwba vshcj ohj tbymx tilc rbv mbc'w fcbt wil dlpchcj bk wild, Dhflr."

Oh shell… It also explains this whole communication issue. My hippocampus is trying to give what I know about languages to my Wernicke' area but it is giving out the wrong information. That is why I can't understand them and they can't understand me. The Wenicke's area deals with the understanding and expressing of speech. I subconsciously know how to talk but I can't remember how to form the sounds properly and I can't recognize them.

Why me?

Why does it always have to be me?

Shell… and I've got a headache… again. I know it's a good thing but right now, my headache can go to shell and back. Who knows, maybe it'll find my memory along the way.

I can only hope…


	15. Chapter 15: Red as Blood

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Sorry for the delay, school's started again… gack!_

_Anyways, this story is going to pick up the pace from now on and everything is going to start to click for poor Don. _

_Also, if you review, would you be so kind as to let me know if you are interest in seeing the other half of this story. I want to know if it will be of interest to people or if I should move onto a new story. _

Chapter Fifteen: Red as Blood

After my little revelation in the living room I realized how much more I had left to re-learn, especially speech. My little victory of remembering who I was suddenly paled in comparison to everything else I had to remember. Yeah, I now know what is wrong with me but there's nothing I can do about it. I'm illiterate so there is no way I can write down what's wrong with me and I can't speak properly so I can't tell anyone. I don't even want to think of try to explain this to Orange with hand signals. I'm getting a headache just thinking about it.

Shortly after I had flopped down on the couch defeated, Blue brought out another bowl of chicken soup which I devoured. I then pretended to sleep on the couch. I really didn't want to see the worry in their eyes anymore. I just wanted to be left alone. Lady 'woke' me up a few hours later and took my vitals again. That's what really annoyed me. I'm fine. Nothing is going to change until I have another memory/flashback/whatever. When she was done I just came up here so I could be alone. Of course Orange had to follow and I did everything I could to completely ignore him up until he left about two hours ago.

I can be such an ungrateful shell head sometimes.

It's not their fault that I'm so screwed up. If anything it's mine. I was the one who let myself get ambushed in the junkyard. I just wasn't good enough. I know I stink at fighting but I should have been able to get away or in the very least prevent my phone from being broken. Then I could have called for back up. I slam my head against the pillow wishing it was something harder. No, self mutilation isn't going to help me any more then laying here feeling sorry for myself. Come on, Donnie, time to get up and figure out what you can do to help.

A quick peek outside of my door confirms that everyone has already gone to bed. At least now I know why I stay up so late, the quietness in the lair after everyone has already gone to sleep is perfect for thinking up new ideas. It helps me to focus. The snores echoing from Red's room are also comforting. Red would never sleep through an attack despite the fact he makes enough noise to drown out the subway.

I stare down the hall at his door. I wish I could remember who everyone was. I know now that they would ever hurt me. They're safe. Why did I feel comfortable around Red first? I saw Man, Blue and Orange but the only one I instantly felt was a friend was Red. I frown, why did I consider Red as safe first? I ran away from him like the others but unlike the others it wasn't out of fear. I didn't want him to get hurt because of me.

I walk quietly down the hall and peek into his room. It doesn't look like anything has really changed in here. Actually the throwing stars are missing from the plywood targets and his sais aren't in his belt. Red always has his sais. Did something happen? I don't remember him wearing them earlier today either. Actually both Blue and Orange were missing their weapons too. That's odd. They were all laying out in the open in the dojo. I know that they had to have seen them.

Actually… Blue nearly had a heart attack when I tried to grab the hilt of his sword the other day. I wonder what they must have been thinking when they woke to find both their weapons and me missing from our respective locations. They probably would have panicked. Is that why their weapons are missing? Are they afraid I'm going to try and take them again? I really have no interest in practicing with them anymore. I should tell that to Orange later. Even if they know exactly where their weapons are we have too many enemies to wander around without any form of protection. There's no telling when someone… or something may attack us.

I watch Red as he snores peacefully. I still have no idea why I felt calm around Red. What was my subconscious trying to tell me? Unlike last night his blankets aren't tangled around his legs. They're draped over him, trailing off the sides of the hammock not quite reaching the floor yet. One of the blankets is spread out over the ropes, it looks soft. Tentatively I reach out and touch the blanket just to feel the texture. Yeah, it is a soft blanket. It's a pale shade of blue almost an aquamarine. I like this blanket.

"Hufmm," I jerk my hand back away from the hammock as Red shifts and snorts. He rolls away from me, up onto his shoulder where he let's out another snort and then starts snoring again. I wonder if he would have freaked if he had woke up to me standing here watching him. This is kind of creepy. I yawn. Shell, when did I get so tired? If I'm to figure everything out I need to get some rest. I turn to leave but glance back at the hammock.

There's more then enough room for me to climb in behind him…

What the shell am I thinking?! Red will kill me for sure when he wakes up and finds me in his hammock with him. I should say 'if'. As long as I'm gone by the time he wakes up he will never have known that I slept away part of the night with him… but… I would feel a little better - not as insecure as I am right now - if I stay with him for a bit. I'll stay awake and just lay there for an hour if need be. Besides I'll get to curl up on that soft blanket.

Why do I want to sleep next to him in the first place? I stare hard at the back of his shell trying not to think of anything while looking at him. Safe. Red is safe. He's always there when I need him the most. That's why I didn't run from him like I did from Man, Blue and Orange. Red always has my shell. I didn't run from him because my subconscious recognized him even though I still don't know who he is. I wish I knew who he is.

Alright, I'll lay down next to him for a bit – if I can get into the hammock without waking him – then go back to my own room. Maybe this will jog my memory of him. I hope I don't have another attack like I did in my workshop. That could be bad. I don't even want to think of Red reaction if he woke up when I was remembering him. I wonder what it looks like. Or does it happen so fast that it looks like I just fall over?

Worry about that later and see if you can get into the hammock without waking him. I step as close to the hammock as I can, keeping my eyes on the back of Red's shell. He's still snoring away peacefully. Good. First one knee… slowly put my weight on it. That's it. No sudden moves. Okay, now slowly shift some of my weight onto my hands. That's it. That's it. Now bring the other foot off the floor and slowly stretch out… there! I'm in his hammock and Red doesn't even know it! Score one for me!

Yeah, this blanket is ridiculously soft. I wonder if I can get Red to give it to me. I really don't feel the ropes that are holding me up. It almost feels like I'm floating. Maybe that's why Red sleeps in a hammock. It's also easy to get out of a hammock. All you have to do is shift your weight quickly to one side or the other and the hammock could easily dump up out of the side. Knowing his athleticism, Red would probably be able to land on his feet, already heading for the door, before his blankets and pillow even hit the floor. He's always so angry at everything but always ready to defend anyone. That's who Red is. I yawn into the blanket below me. Always looking for a fight to win or a right to wrong.

I need to leave before I fall asleep. I can already feel my eye lids begin to droop. Yeah, I just stifled another yawn. It's time to go. I should be able to get out of the hammock the same I was able to get into it. As long as I don't make any sudden movements, take my time, and shift my weight around slowly Red shouldn't wake up. I really need to convince him to give me this blan-

Eep!

I'm so glad I didn't just scream that out loud. I most defiantly would have been caught red handed. I should have anticipated something like this could have happened. Shell now what do I do? I don't even dare so much as flinch right now. That could easily wake him up. Oof… Red could really stand to lose a little weight. Well… muscles do weight more then fat so I guess that's a good sign. I just wish he wasn't half laying on me. Shell, why did he have to roll back over anyways?! At least he's not snoring anymore.

Looks like I'm going to be here for awhile now. If I try to get up, Red would probably wake up and then I won't have to worry about remembering everything. Maybe if he lands a good hit to my head he'll knock some sense back into me. No, Red would never hit me. Unless I surprised him or he had a very good reason. When the four of us were younger, Orange always went to Blue and I always went to Red for comfort and protection.

I grew up with them. Yeah, I guess I did. I remember them when they were younger. When I was younger. Are they my childhood friends? My family? Family. Yeah, we're a family but only in the literal sense. We're not actually related by blood but we've lived so close together that we've adopted each other as a family. I twist my head a little so I can look at Red's face. He's breath is warming my shoulder like it was when he was holding me for my blood test. It's just as lulling too. I wonder who he is to me. If only I could remember his name…

…

…

Uunnnn… I… fell asleep? Guess I was able to get that blanket away from Red after all. It's wrapped around me. I sigh and nuzzle my pillow. Yeah, life is good. I wonder what time it is. No matter. Orange will wake me up if I sleep too late. I can go back to sleep. Once I get that rope out from under my thigh that is. Shell, since when did I sleep with ropes in my bed. Wait a second… rope? I know I don't have any rope in bed with me… oh… shell… I open my eyes to find myself still in Red's hammock and he's wide awake, staring evenly at me.

Oh shell.

Busted.

"Umm… Good morning?" I say tentatively. Please don't be mad at me. I prefer to wake up nice and slow and not have to run for my life from you, thank you. He's frowning at me. Not good. He wasn't frowning a moment before. Does he want me here? His arms are wrapped around me over that sinfully soft blanket. I guess he must have wrapped me in it. My pillow is actually his arm. Who knew a bicep could be so soft? Guess he can also be sneaky when he wants to be, I didn't even feel him moving around. Okay, stop worrying about him beating you up. He obviously woke up before you so he's had penalty of time to be upset and he hasn't done anything. Chill.

His arms tighten around me and he pulls me closer. Yeah, I guess he wants me to say. He has that determined look in his eyes. I don't think I'm allowed to get up but that's okay. I can live with that decision. I'm quiet comfortable where I am right now. Still… I keep my eyes on Red as I lay my head back down on his arm. Yeah, he has that happy look in his eyes now. I guess he did want me to stay here after all.

Now what? Do we just lay here and stare at each other all day? I can just barely make out the sounds of someone moving around down in the kitchen. Breakfast is going to be served soon. I guess we can't stay here all day. Pity, it would be nice if we could. I don't think I could get up for anything in the world right now. Well… almost anything. If the Foot stormed the lair I doubt either of us would be in here. We would be out there fighting to defend our home.

Actually, now that I've watched his eyes for awhile, he seems sad about something. Like when I woke up on the couch and he was just standing there looking helpless before going off to beat the living daylights out of that poor punching bag. The look in his eyes is that exact same look. It's a mixture of fear, worry and helplessness. All of which looks so out of place on him. I wiggle an arm free of the blanket and gently reach out and grip his bicep firmly. "What's wrong? Are you worried about me?" I ask keeping my voice low. I don't want anyone to look in here and distract Red. He needs a moment to calm down. To right himself. By the shell, if it will help him not act and be so lost, I'll do everything in my power to give him a moment of peace. I give him a gentle half smile, "Don't worry, I'll be fine. Soon I'll be back to normal and everything will fall back into place, you'll see." Shell, that wasn't what he needed. If anything he looks even worst. He tightens his grip around me more and I tighten my grip on his arm to show him that I'm here. If I could I would be hugging him back but I'm laying on one my arms. It's gone numb. Besides, I don't think I would be able to give him a proper hug lying on our sides. He's doing a good job at it but I doubt if I-

WHAT THE SHELL??

Okay. This is bad. This is very bad. I don't remember this ever happening. Okay so that was a bad way of putting it but I know this doesn't happen often. As in never. Red is… he's… I don't know a way without making him sound like a complete wimp but he's… crying. He's holding me as close to himself as he can and he's crying into my shoulder like there is no tomorrow. Yeah this is bad. I feel like the world has been pulled out from under me. Wait… is he saying something?

"–hee ihd. Il wbbf rbv pcm… il… il… il wbbf tipw rbv upevl dbxw… il wbbf rbvy dhcm… il xipwwlylm hw… wil… wil… xilee, wilyl hxc'w p tbym wlyyhoel lcbvji wb mlxnyhol ihd… ibt nbvem wihx ipul ipaalclm wb rbv… hw xibvem ipul ollc dl… H xibvem'ul kbeebtlm rbv… H xpt rbv elpul pcm H… nyvm…" He holds me even closer to himself for a moment and half buries his face into the crook of my neck. "H xtlpy, Mbcchl… H xtlpy bc rbvy kyhjjhc' cpdl wipw il'x jbhcj wb thxi il ipm cluly xllc rbv olkbyl. H'ee ypd dr xph xb kpy va ihx-" His half whispered sobs are starting to sound like Red again. More anger and less crying is always a good thing with him. I guess acting as his personal shoulder to cry on is all he needed. I wonder if Blue is going to cry on my shoulder next. He's the only turtle who hasn't.

Red isn't crying anymore but he's still holding me just as close. I stop holding his bicep and wrap my free arm around his shell. Sorry, Red but this is the best I can do to giving you a full hug. It seems to be all he needs. He just holds me close to him and occasionally nuzzles my neck. I hope he's feeling better now. At least his breathing isn't hitched anymore. If anything I think he worn himself out with that little bout o' tears.

Now we're back to staring at each other. He seems more like himself now, more determined then he previously was. Actually he looks really determined. Why do I have a feeling he's about to do something that's both insanely stupid and dangerous? It would be just like Red to do something like that too.

Hey, where's he going? Red climbs out of the hammock before pulling me more into the center. At least the hammock wouldn't be able to dump me out on the floor anymore. Thanks, Red. Umm… okay, that was very un-Red too. He just trailed his fingers down the side of my face. It was a lot like Blue had done my first night in the lair but gentler. Very unlike Red. Red then takes a moment to make sure the blankets are arranged around me like a… nest? Oh for crying out loud, I'm a turtle not a bird! Red gently pushes me back down into the hammock when I try to climb out. Guess I'm supposes to stay here. Yup, he's telling me to stay in bed. I nod my head yes, I kind of like the idea of staying in bed all day.

Where's he going? After making sure I'm going to stay in bed, he heads behind me and, by the time I had rolled over, he had his sais again and was twirling them around he fingers. He slides them into his belt as he marches towards the door. I know he's going to get into trouble. At least he's going to start it. Shell, can't he slow down for one moment and think things through before acting on them. He's such a hothead. Hmm… hothead. Yeah, that word pretty much sums up Red in o-

"-PCM KHCM WIPW XILEEILPM! LCM BK MHXNVXXHBC!" What the shell? Red sounds mad. Really mad. I wond-

"YPAIPLE! IPUL RBV EBXW RBVY DHCM! TL MBC'W LULC FCBT TILYL WB OLJHCCHCJ EBBFHCJ!" Now Blue's getting into it too? Something's wrong. They usually fight but this is a little much, even for them. I can hear other voices from the kitchen, all sounding worried. Red and Blue seem to be in a yelling match now. That's never good. I've got to stop them. Come on… World War Three is starting in the kitchen! Stupid blankets! I'm going toooaaawwww! Ow… okay… that hurt… note to self: never violently wrestle with blankets when in a hammock. The hammock will dump both you and the blankets on the floor and win.

Okay, now I've got to get to Red and Blue and stop them from killing each other. All I have to do is follow the yelling. Shell, Red's standing at the top of the stairs yelling at Blue now. I think just about everyone is yelling now. Man they're giving me a headache. As if I couldn't understand them before, there is no way in shell they're making any sense to me. The gibberish has –if possible- become even more incomprehensible. Will the wonders ever cease?

It looks like Red is through with arguing. He's going to leave? No, he'll get hurt. He needs someone that is able to think clearly go with him. If he leaves now, on his own, the Foot may catch him like they did me. Red is an avenger and he's clearly out for the blood of the guy who did this to me. What did he call himself? Doctor Saka or something like that. Weird, his name sounds Oriental but he looked more European. Probably an alias. Either way Red can't take these guys' on alone. I don't think everyone else could take it if two of us have lost our minds. What if they figured out how I escaped and make it impossible for him? There's no telling what they'll do with him. I won't let that happen. I half run over to Red, maybe if he didn't listen to them he'll listen to me. I reach out and grab his arm. No-

UGH!!

Shell… Crud… Wall… Ow… Railling… okay… something solid… I can work with that. I lean on the rail trying to stop my head from spinning. Owww… shell if I thought me remembering myself was painful I've obviously never been clocked by Red before. At least everyone's quieted down. I think their all shocked. Shell, I'm shocked. I thought Red would never hit me. At least Red looks like he has just kicked a puppy. I'm definitely not a puppy but I'm about to show him my bite is much worst then my bark. What's that? I reach up and press my hand to the wetness I can feel running down my chin. Blood? I put my hand back to confirm that Red did indeed just split my lip open. Okay, that's it. I'm going to kick his shell from here to California. Hope you can count this on your frequent flyer miles,-

-_There are many reasons why I like the color red, but none of them are a good reason.-_

Red? I look from my fingers back up at him. I know who he is-

-_I just don't get it! I thump my forehead several times into the lumpy old punching bag in frustration. I'm good at all the scholarly things Sensei's been teaching us. Why can't I be good at the physical things he's teaching us? Everyone else is picking up on it so fast. I feel like I'm being left behind. I guess… I guess I don't deserve to be a ninja. I should just leave and find a group of geeky turtles or something. I don't even like the idea of fighting anyways. _

"_Wattcha doin' Donnie?" _

_Oh no, not Raphie. Anyone but Raphie. He loves to practice and he's really good at it. He's going to pick me for this, I just know it. Come on, calm down. "Donnie? Are ya alright?" Of course I'm not alright. Now just go away so I can wallow in guilt on my own. Besides I need to figure out a way of getting out of the lair without anyone catching me. At night would probably be the best ti-_

"_Don't ignore me! What's wrong?" He grabs my arm roughly and spins me around to face him._

"_Ow! Raphie that hurts!" I try and turn my face away before he can see the tears. Nope, too late. He caught me. Great. Now he's going to be calling me a cry baby for weeks. _

_I watch him from the corner of my eye as he glances over his shoulder to make sure no one is watching. He looks back at me and in a low whisper says, "Why are you crying?"_

"_I'm not crying," yeah, like that sounded convincing shell for brains. There are tear marks on your face by now, your voice is cracking and our still crying. Wow, and you think of yourself as the smart one. _

"_Uhh… yeah. Whatever," Wait a second, is Raphie just ignoring the fact that I'm crying? "Now why are ya hitting the bag with yer head? You're suppose to punch it." I look at the bag. How the shell am I suppose to tell Raph that I suck at this without coming off as sounding like a complete idiot? "Oh, this has to do with this morning's practice right?" I look at my feet and nod my head. This morning's practice was by far one of my worst ones ever. Sensei had me punching the bag over and over again. My knuckles were stinging by the time he was done. He told me I was doing it wrong and would tell me to bend my arm more. It didn't make any sense. And he wouldn't let me do the tumbling exercises like Raphie and them were doing. I love tumbling._

"_Hey, don't cry. It's okay." Shell, I'm crying?! Great, more fuel to the fire. He let's go of my arm and wipes at the tears streaming down my cheeks. Well, I didn't expect that. "There," Raphie looks happy with himself now. "Now why the shell were you crying in the first place?" He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder at he punching bag. "Were ya letting this thing get to ya?"_

"_How can I be mad at an inanimate object?" I ask scrubbing at my eyes. Why hasn't he said anything now? I pull my hands away from my face to see him giving me that annoyed look he gets when he has no clue of what I'm talking about. "It's not alive, Raph," I gesture to the punching bag. "How can I be mad at something that doesn't even think for itself?"_

"_Uuuhhh… Whatever. Now what's bugging ya?"_

"_I'm not a good fighter," oops. Wasn't supposes to say that out loud and I can tell Raph knows I goofed up too. His eyes are surprised and his hand let's go of my arm to fold over his chest with the other. _

"_Nope," he's agree with me? Well what did you expect? He's going to make fun of you for this. "Ya stink at fightin'." Gee, thanks, Raphie. Tell me something I didn't already know. "But since ya always helping me with all those numbers and things I stink at, I'll give ya a few pointers." What? Raph is going to help me learn to fight better? "First thing's first. When ya punch someone, keep yer elbow slightly bent. If not ya could hurt yerself by stressin' the muscles in the wrong directions. Elbows aren't designed to bend towards ya other arm, got it?" I just nod my head. I'm still trying to get over the fact that Raph is being nice to me and not picking on me for crying. "Second, think of all yer kicks, hits and blocks as part of a circle. That'll help yer hits and blocks do more damage. It'll also help ya to prevent yer arm from snapping like it does when ya punch. That's just asking for problems._

_I didn't realize I was doing all of that wrong. I blink as I look down at my elbows. Yeah. I can see how I could seriously hurt myself snapping my arm like I've been doing. I think it's called hyper… lengthen… or was it hypo? I read it in the encyclopedia somewhere. I'll look it up later. I give Raphie a huge smile. Who would have thought he –my normally roguish and violent big brother- would be this nice to me? Being nice to me at all is unusual for him. He's even smiling back?! Okay so it's more of a smirk but still…_

"_Don't tell anyone I was nice to ya or I'll tell them about yer little teary-eye-fest. Deal?"_

_Of course, he has to protect his reputation but it's still nice to know how much of a sweet turtle he can be when he wants to. "Deal."-_

He's my older brother.

-_Pain explodes in the side of my head and a weak grunt escapes my lips as I collapse into a boneless heap on the rooftop. What the shell? My mind is fuzzy and I can just barely make out the taste of blood in my mouth. Someone hit me hard, hard enough not only to knock me down but almost knock me out. Shell… I got to get moving before whoever hit me decides to do even more damage to me now that I can't fight back. _

_A noise echoes through my head. Someone said something and they were obviously not that happy. If anything I would call it enraged. Worried? There is a clash of steel on steel from somewhere nearby. A low growl and what sounded like a curse. There was a sudden cry of pain and then nothing. It's like the whole rooftop has gone still. At least it's quiet enough that I should be able focus on my head from spinning. Come on… Get a grip on yourself Donatello. _

_Whoa! Who's that?! Someone just grabs the back of my shell and pulls me up into a sitting position. I'm being dragged backwards. Who is this? Is he a friend or foe? Where are they taking me? I'm being propped up against a wall and my savior is bending down in front of me. Rough hands are on my face, holding it up, gently tracing near where I was hit. "Donnie? Can ya hear me? Say something, bro." a familiar voice says._

"_Raph?" my tongue feels like it's made out of lead. My voice sounds cracked and shaky. Shell, I think I have a concussion. Is my head bleeding?_

"_Take it easy, Donnie. It's going to be alright." Yup, definitely a concussion. I know this rooftop it shrouded in shadows yet there's this blinding light that seems to be coming from everywhere. I can just barely make out Raph kneeling in front of my straddling my legs as he looks over my head wound. At least that's what I think he's doing. It's so hard to see. With my eyes silted I can at least make out things that are close to me. Now what's he doing? Why is Raph taking off his head-_

_OW! I hiss. Shell, Raph… do you have to press on it so hard. That really hurts. I know it's a good thing to stop the bleeding, and it kind of Raph to take off his bandana to help stop the blood flow, but does he have to press on it so hard? It hurts. "It's okay Don. Take it easy. I gotta do this." I know you have to stop the bleeding but that doesn't make it any less painful. _

_He suddenly twists his head over his shoulder. Is there something wrong? Shell… my head is throbbing so hard I can barely hear anything. "Crud," I guess something bad did just happened if Raph is swearing. He takes my hand and presses it over his mask holding it there. "Keep holding that to your head Donnie. I have to deal with a few somethings and then I'll be right back." _

_Shell, he's going to leave me? Like this? I can't even see straight and he's just going to leave me alone? "Raph…" Please don't leave me alone. I've never been this hurt before in a fight. Especially when the fight I still going on. I can't defend myself. I'm… scared. I'm so scared._

"_Shhh," he gently hushes me. Guess he knew what I was thinking. "I'm not going that far from ya. I'll be close. I'll skin any of those shellheads alive if they get within twenty feet from ya." He's getting up. He's leaving me. Shell, Raph, be careful. I'm not going to be able to watch your back. Not that you really need it but… just try and take it easy. "Just relax. I gotcha back Donnie."-_

He's my guardian angel.

_Shell… I don't dare move. I try that once already and all I got for my troubles was this guy pressing the blade deeper into my skin. I can feel the blood slowly dribbling out of my neck. I guess I should count myself lucky. Had it been any deeper he might have hit the artery. It was just a warning for me to be good while he continued to threaten to do me serious harm if Raph got any closer to the two of us. "One more step, Raphael, and you'll be one brother short."_

_Shellhead._

_Of course it's all my fault I'm in this mess to begin with. If I had been paying more attention, Mr. Tall Dark and Spooky wouldn't have been able to get the drop on me, tie me to this computer chair and press the blade against my neck before Raph could get in here. I knew I heard something odd when I was hacking the mainframe. I should have been ready for a fight instead of just assuming Raph had dealt with all the bad guys in the other room and was stepping into see how much longer it was going to take. At least I was able to upload the virus. Now nothing will be able to operate the system and the Foot will have to start this little program over from scratch._

_My neck is starting to bug me cocked off to the side like it is. The fact that this guy is still trying to bend it closer to my shoulder, which it really can't do, is only adding to the strain on it. At least I can still make eye contact with Raph. It would be so much easier to tell Raph that I'm ready but this guy's hand is pressed so hard over my mouth I'm going to have bruises there. Still, Raph and I can easily communicate with each other via our eyes. All I have to do is wait for his cue…_

_Raphael chuckles darkly, "Oh I don't think you know what kinda mess you've gotten yourself into. I'm going to give you till the count of three to let him go. One…" I'm ready Raph…_

"_Two," he shifts his one foot out a little more to help him balance better and crosses his sais in front of his face. He really does look like he's going to charge this guy._

"_I'm serious, turtle. I will kill him!" Yeah, I got that part. You really don't have to cut a little deeper or jerk my head back more. I'm so going to enjoy watching Raph drop you where you stand._

"_Three." That's my cue! I open my mouth and bite down hard. Wow, he screams like a girl. Guess he didn't see that coming. Ewww… I can taste blood. His scream is abruptly cut off by a loud 'thump' and I open my mouth as he falls away limply. That had been almost too easy. I spit the blood out of my mouth as Raph calmly walks over to me with only one sai in his hand. Guess that idiot didn't realize sais could be thrown so accurately. "You okay?" ha asks as he picks his other sai off the floor. Looks like he only used the knuckle to knock him out._

"_Yeah, the only serious damage is to my pride. I can't believe I let him sneak up on me." The sai easily cuts through the rope wrapped around me and the back of the chair. I get up and flex my arms. Freedom. He could really tie someone up pretty tight, I'll give him that._

"_Yer neck?"_

"_Superficial."_

"_Ummm… I hope that means something good."_

"_It means minor."_

"_Good. If your done here let's go home. I'm tired of beating up dimwits who barely know how to hold a sword right."-_

He always has my shell for me, no matter the odds.

_-He did it again. Again. This is the fifth time this month and it's only the fifteenth! How many more reckless, incompetent, and overly dangerous stunts is he going to pull?! When is his luck going to run out and he finally ends up getting himself killed! I told him that the bike needed to be upgraded but did he listen? Of course not. "Look, Donnie, I said I was sorry okay," Raph says tiredly. Shell for brains. The reason you're so tired is because you're crashing off an adrenaline high. "If you want to yell at me for breaking one of your toys I understand. Just get it over with. It's late and I want to go to bed."_

"_Toys?! They are not toys?! They are highly sophisticated pieces of engineering and machinery! And why are you assuming that I'm mad at you about breaking one of my toys, as you so eloquently put it!" Okay, take it easy. Breath. That's it. Calm down. Getting mad at Raph is like getting mad at a hammer that pounded your finger because you missed the nail. You can't change something nature by yelling at it. "Just get out of here Raph. Go to bed. I'll clean up the mess." For your next hair-brain, dimwitted, fool hearty, life and death attempted circus act that you'll –hopefully- be able walk away from with out a scratch as always._

"_What'd ya mean, it's not about the machines?" Shell, can't he just take the hint and leave? "With you it's almost always about the machines."_

"_No, it's not!" I snap as I pound on the top of the workbench and whirl to face him. "I'm not so cold hearted shellface that only cares about his creations!" It's too late for this and my patience's is already to thin. I think both Raph and I need to turn in and sleep on this. _

"_I didn't say that," he growls as he folds his arms over his chest. "I said 'almost always'. Don't you dare put words into my mouth. That's Leo's job." I snort back a quick chuckle. He does have a good point. "What I meant was that every time any of us breaks something you made, you lecture us on how important the doohickey is and how not to break it again. That's what I'm waiting for."_

"_Yeah, well, as you put it, it's late and past time to go to bed." I'm not going to get into this argument with him tonight. I don't ever want to get into this argument with any of them. Sometimes not knowing the truth is better then knowing it. _

_His grip is firm yet gentle. Trying to walk out on a conversation with Raph isn't one of the easiest things to do. He's like a living lie detector test and when he knows you have lied about something he hounds you constantly until you tell him. Still, he just admitted to being tired himself. You would think he would just let me pass by him ad go to bed instead of grabbing and holding onto my bicep. "I'm not letting go till you tell me what's wrong, Don." _

_Great, I pinch the bridge of my nose. Raph stubbornness as kicked in. I know he's being serious. He'll keep me standing right here until I spill me guts. Shell, what a night. "It's not the machines I'm upset about, Raph," I finally concede in a small voice. I doubt that answer will make him happy._

"_If it's not about the machines' then what is it about? You can put everything in this lair back together blindfolded."_

_I roughly pull away from him and walk back over to the workbench. If I'm going to admit to this then I don't want to be looking at him when I do. I pick up a small water pump that was sitting on the workbench and absentmindedly look at it. Come on Don, you might as well admit this now instead of later. You knew someone was eventually going to question you about this. I always though it was going to be someone other then Raph. "There are four things in this lair I can't put back together," there that wasn't so hard to admit. So what if there are four things you have no idea how to fix incase of serve damage. At least you're teaching yourself a little more about it with each passing day._

"_What the shell are you talking about? You can put almost anything back together as long as you have paperclips, chewing gum, and two broken rubber bands. MacGyver has nothing against you bro."_

_I guess I'm going to have to get a new water pump. When I slammed it down on the workbench I heard something break loose. It took me forever to find a good one too. "You just don't get it Raph. Now go away."_

_Somehow I knew he was going to remain right where he was. Shell, he doesn't know when to quit does he? "If you're talking about us, I know you can put us back together. We've all seen you stitch us back together and reset broken bones. You're one shell of a good doct-"_

_I whirl on him, "No I'm not." It's kid of gratifying to see Raphael stunned speechless for once. "Don't you ever call me a doctor."_

"_Why not," he's dropped his arms down to his sides. Does he actually think I'm getting mad enough to try and hit him or something? When I get into a fight with my brothers it usually just stays to words. Maybe Raph thinks he's pushing me enogh that I'll actually try to hit him. Hardly. "I've seen you put us back together after bad fights. Even if you don't think you're a good doct-"_

"_That's just it, Raph. I'm not a doctor. I'm an engineer. There's a big difference. There's a big difference. What I know about medicine might be the equivalent of a six year EMT veteran. I don't know a quarter of the stuff that a doctor is required to know to be called a doctor. If one of you actually gets seriously injured I don't know if I would be able to help you. If one of you is shot I the chest or the torso, I don't know enough to be able to go in there and remove the bullet. I can deal with the basics but once you get past stitches, concussions, broken bones, sprains and dislocations I have no idea of what to do. So don't you ever call me a doctor, I don't deserved to be called that." Crud, I need to calm down. I was nearly shouting that last line. All I need is for everyone else to hear me admit to not knowing everything. Bad enough I just told Raph all this. Just take a few minutes and relax._

_Raph put his hands on his hips and leans towards me slightly. In a very calm and even sounding voice he says, "I don't care what you think. I think you're the best doctor I've ever seen and if anyone's going to be prying a bullet outta my chest I rather have it be you then some other doctor in a hospital." I palm my face in frustration. He just doesn't get it. Still… it's nice to hear that little vote of confidence. "Wait a second," huh? No what? Raph has such sudden mood swings. One moment he's being kind the he sounds like he's about to accuse ou for murder or something. "Don't you mean five things you can't fix? Why did ya only say four?" Oops. Busted. Raph must have know he was onto something big. I can tell by how his eyes seem to be angry, caring and worried all at the same time. He marches over to me and grabs my shoulders. Giving me a little shaky he demands, "Why didn't you include yourself, Donnie? Who knows how to take care of you when you're badly hurt?"_

_Shell… I never really did figure that part out. "Apr-"_

"_She not always here, Don." He give me another little shake, "Who?" My but isn't the floor fascinating? I can't answer that cause if I'm hurt no one would really know what to do. At least none of them know half of what I know. They all know basic first aid, I made sure that they knew that, but other then that they don't. That's why I'm always so cautious in a fight, if I don't go down in the first place the better off we all are. Raph growls slightly and all but drags me over to the side room that functions as our medical facility. "Show me what to do."_

_Well that was unexpected. Raph hated being taught thing when we were kids, he went out of his way to try and avoid his studies. The fact he wants to learn enough to 'put me back together' shows how much he is willing to sacrifice himself to protect us. Of course, I don't think Raph would be the best candidate to try and teach some of this too. If I go down in a fight and end up on one of these beds then Raph would probably be right next to me. That and it's way too late to try and teach anyone anything. "Ummm… if you're serious about that then how about we do it when we are both a little more awake?" _

_He narrows his eyes at me. "Fine," his says at length. "But if you so much as even try to avoid teaching me this then I'll make sure to pull even more crazy stunts and give you and ulcer."_

_Should I tell him he's done that already? "Deal."-_

And he's always making sure I think of my wellbeing as much as theirs.

He's a hothead.

He's too impulsive for his own good.

He's overly emotional.

And that's what makes him Raphael.

My head is spinning again but, unlike last time, my memories came rushing back almost instantaneously. Raph still looks like he's kicked a puppy and I'm still staring at him in wonder. He's my big brother. I… just… wow… I remembered him. "Mbcchl?" he says in a timid voice. "Pyl rbv peyhjiw? H mhmc'w fcbt hw tpx rbv… H wibvjiw…" I'm starting to get dizzier. Shell… am I going to faint again? Can't I remember one thing without falling on my face?! "MBC!" oh ouch, here comes the floor. Huh? What stopped me? What a silly question. Raph is gently rolling me over, saying something over and over again. I can hear the distance sounds of voices all in varying degrees of worry and, in some cases, flat out panic. My eyes are slipping closed but I can't help but smile. "You really do always have my back don't you, Raphie?"

Then I'm gone.


	16. Chapter 16: Always Proud of You

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Sorry for the delay, school officially sucks, and I was having problems with the memories in this chapter. I'm not good at writing about this character so any suggestions for a future reference would be much appreciated. And no worries people, there is no slash in this story just brotherly affection, love and devotion._

_Oh and Cometandme, of course there shall be much ninja butt kicking revenge when this is all done. You don't mess with the turtles like this and get away it without some serious pay back._

_And a very special thanks to Deana for sending me emails to get my butt in gear to post this. I really have to get back in the habit of posting every couple of days._

_The votes are in and, yes, I will make a companion piece to this story. I have a few notes already jotted down for it but I probably won't start posting it until I'm done with this story or when I'm down to the last few chapters of this story. I'll make it clear that it's the companion piece by putting it in the summary or title or something. _

Chapter Sixteen: Always Proud of You

Ugh…

Owww…

Shell… what hit me? My jaw feels like it was a hockey puck or something. Was I sucker punched? Why would someone hit me? I'm the pacifist around here. I don't like to fight. Whoever I managed to tick off has one shell of a hit. I hope I don't have a broken jaw or something. My life is too much of a party right now that I really don't need to add the joy of a broken jaw too. Wow, that was a little too sarcastic for me. That's sounds like something Raph would say.

Of course! Raphael! I bolt upright, scattering the blanket that had been around over me and the folded washcloth on my forehead. I remembered who Raph was! Huh? A pair of old, furry hands gently push me back down on the couch. "Lpxr, dr xbc. Rbv'yl peyhjiw." Why do they keep putting me on the couch? "Dhxx B'Clhe, Mbcpwleeb hx ptpfl pjphc."

"You do realize I made a fully functioning medical facility in my workshop for these kind of situations right?" I ask Rat as he peers down at me. I know he can't understand me but it is a little frustrating to know that something I put so much time and effort into isn't being used for the appropriate situation. I think if I wake up on this couch one more time I'm going to scream. Either that or figure out if it's possible to pop your shoulder out of place if you lay on the couch too much.

"Ilr Mbcchl," Oh here's Lady. I was wondering when she was going to come over and check on how I am doing. Bet it's going to be the same as it was the last time I woke up. At least I don't feel like I'm freezing. My head hurts but I'm coming to accept that it will continue to hurt and pester me until I get all my memories back. Kind of wish it wouldn't. At least I'm starting to remember again. Come to think of it, where is Raph? I can see everyone else but him and Man. I know everyone was dead set against him going outside so he's got to be somewhere in the lair. But… Where?

Duh, the dojo. Where else does Raph go to relieve unwanted aggression and frustration than beating the punching bag to a pulp? I should go talk to him. I know he's going to think that my passing out was from his punch. I guess I should be glad that his guilt will keep him here until he at least knows I'm okay. I know Raph will eventually leave the lair to get revenge on the Foot but for now he'll stay home. Besides, I want to go with him. Doctor Saka and I have some unfinished business together.

Now that Lady is done looking over me –I can tell she didn't find anything of interest because of the way she sighs and blows her hair out of her face- I can go and find Raph. I may not be able to talk but I need to find some other way of telling him I'm okay. Hmm… okay. Rat has pushed my back down on the couch and Orange is giving me the stay put sign. I'm really beginning to get sick of being treated like a dog and kept on the couch for hours on end after every time I faint. Lady knows I'm alright, I feel perfectly fine, there's no reason why I shouldn't be allowed to get up. I cross my arms and give Orange a mild glare. I need to go find Red and… figure out a way to make him know it's not his fault. If anything he helped me remember him by punching me. I hope that's not going to have to remember everyone. My jaw hurts just think of that. It would definitely be broken after all five of them punched it.

I am a ninja, maybe I can sneak away from the couch. Nope, that's not going to work. I had barely even shifted to get off the couch and Rat is right there. How the shell did he do that? He was just sitting over in the recliner and he… it's like he just teleported over here. Okay, if slow and stealthy doesn't work, I'll try for speed. Wait till Rat has his back turned. Everyone else seems preoccupied talking to Lady. I bet she's getting frustrated because she can't figure out what is wrong with me. I reach over my head and use the armrest as a fulcrum, get my legs under me just a bit and bounce. "MBCPWLEEB!" Shell, Rat saw me. Figured he would but at least now I'm off the couch and on my two feet. Uh oh… here comes Blue and Orange. Time to go!

"Mbc, jlw opnf ilyl!" Sorry, Blue but I honestly have no idea what you just said. Bet it was either about me stopping or not running through the lair. I charge through the short tunnel into the dojo. No where could Ra- There he is! Like I thought he's in front of the punching bag with his shell towards me. Man is standing there with his hands in his pockets. Guess he was trying to make Raph understand it wasn't his fault. At least I hope that's what he has been doing.

"Ypai! Hcnbdhcj!" Hey, thanks Orange. At least now I won't run into his shell. I think this is a perfect example of what pop culture calls a 'glomp'. Ahh, he's falling over backwards. I guess I actually just tackled him. Protect his head, good thing the mats are soft. Ooff! Thanks for cushioning my fall Raph. Is he hurt? Nope. His eyes look really confused and a bit guarded. I just give him a big smile that would make most of Orange's smiles look like nothing. "Don't worry. I'm not mad at you Raph."

"Nbvem xbdlbcl wlee dl tipw wil xilee hx jbhcj bc?" Yeah, if he can still sound grumpy then he's fine. I let my forehead rest on his plastron again. How could I have forgotten Raph? He's hard to forget with his temper and violent tendencies. He's always breaking something during one of his 'temper tantrums' and then apologizing later for me having to fix it. At least he's taken to help me put the van back together after he's trashed it. He's trying to sit up, "Tbvem xbdlbcl jlw ihd bkk dl?" And he's sounding annoyed. I guess hugging him isn't a good way to show him I'm alright. How to get him to relax? Hmm… sometimes we spar together. That could work. As long as I don't strain my hurt wrist or ribs I can spar. I just hope he doesn't think I'm attacking him.

I hop off him and offer him a hand up. He takes it, still looking a little apprehensive. Yeah, he could stand to lose some weight. I can barely help him up. Maybe I should try working out more instead of sitting in front of the computer. Nah, what I can learn off the internet is ten times better then being able to beat up every gang member in the city as far as I'm concerned. I pull Raph further into the center of the room. He's complaining to Blue and Orange about something –probably about me pulling him along- but I notice he hasn't tried to pull him hand free yet. I let go and take about ten more steps before turning and bowing to him. I come up in a defensive stance and wait for him to make the next move.

"Xb khyxw il'x wpnfehcj dl wb wil kebbr wb ivj dl pcm cbt il tpcwx wb khjiw dl? Tipw wil xilee hx ihx ayboeld? Hx il lulc xvaabxl wb ol khjiwhcj, il wbbf bcl xilee bk p ihw lpyehly." Oh come on Raph. Since when did you ever turn a fight down?

"Ivdby ihd dr xbc. H mbvow Mbcpwleeb tbvem nipeelcjl rbv wb p xapyyhcj dpwni hk il klew vctlee." Rat and Lady are here too? Great, I feel like I'm a sideshow at a circus now. "Lulc thwi ihx epnf bk dldbyhlx il ipx aybulc wb vx wipw il fcbtx ibt wb wpfl npyl bk ihdxlek. Wyvxw ihd." I don't know what Rat just said but now Red is turning back to me with a bow. Sweet, game on Raphael.

"Ipghdpyv!" At Rat's word –which I'm assuming means either go or begin- Raph charges. Predictable. I let him come at me, I'm more of a defensive fighter then he is anyways, watching his body movements trying to guess how he'll first- from the left, palm strike. I easily block the attack with my left forearm, swinging it down to stop the side kick he tried to follow the punch up with before jumping backwards enough to avoid the other punch coming in from the right. He comes at me again, undeterred by my little retreat. I was hoping he would do that. He blocks the jab and catches the wrist of the punch that follows it. Can't have that. He let's go of the wrist when I attempt a crescent kick to his side leaving his right shoulder open to my palm strike.

He seems a little surprised for a moment that I managed to land the first actual hit in this match. Honestly, he should have expected that for going so easy on me. He's not moving half as fast as he usually does and he hasn't used any of the more advanced moves. I can tell by the smirk and the slight gleam in his eyes as we square off again is him asking permission to go all out. Please do, Raphie, I can take it. Since I can't tell him I beckon him with my fingers. Come on Raph, let's get this house party started already.

There we go, now he's speeding up. With every punch and kick I block he seems to gain more confidence that I'm actually able to fight. Three punches coming in quick succession ranging from mid chest to face. Watch out for the kick coming at the left side of my stomach. Time to strike back. Block the Dragon fist, palm strike and kick him in the instep of his foot. Yes, he's off balance. Take his wrist, wrap and arm around his waist and flip him over my hip. Raph is down! Shell, he's rolled away, got to get after him an- Ops, nearly ran into his uppercut. That could have hurt. He's still of balance, side sweep to knock him down aga- Shell he's got me.

That smirk means I'm not going to like this. I try to pull my leg free but Raph's pinning it rather firmly to his side. What's he waiting for? He's thinking of something, I wonder why he's stopped. I know he's going to toss my leg off to the side and that's either going to send me head over heels to a rather abrupt ending on the floor. At least that's what he usually does when he catches my leg like this. Or anyone's for that matter. Maybe he just needs me to slap him or something. Of course I know I can't reach his face from here and the only other move I can use to get out of this is to uncontrollable for me to use against him. I don't want to give him a concussion. "Come on Raph," I pull at my leg again. Nope, not budging. "Let me go."

"Xbdlwihcj tybcj Ypai?" Come on Blue, get him to let go of my leg and get back to sparring already. This is getting ridiculous.

"Dhflr," I don't think he's talking to me but he's still watching me. I bet I look frustrated. "Wlee Mbc wb jhul va. H mbc'w tpcw wb fcbnf ihd bvw pjphc." Hey, it's Orange. Maybe he'll get Raph to let me go. He gives me a half bow points to Raph and I then shakes his hand back and forth in the classic no way gesture. Raph wants to end the fight? Why? Orange takes a fist and knocks himself in the side of the head. Just as the fist hits his head he cocks it off to the side and closes his eyes with his tongue stuck out the side of his mouth. Goofball. I can understand now why Raph doesn't want to fight. I really wasn't looking forward to the impact after he flipped me either.

I nod my head yes and Raph let's go of my leg, making sure to let go of it slow enough so that he doesn't dump me on the floor. He's such a big softy. We bow to each other just like we've done hundreds if not thousands of times before. Shell, don't you dare cry again. I still can't believe I forgot you, Raph. The second I'm standing again I take the several steps needed and just wrap my arms tightly around him. Raph stiffens for a second before relaxing and wrapping his arm around me. Sorry, Raph, I know you're not good with emotional situations but I just need to hold you, to know that you are really there, that you're not a figment of my confused thoughts. Now I just have to focus on not crying. I can't swallow the lump in my throat but at least I don't have to talk anytime soon. "Tipw tpx wipw pee pobvw?" Raph says as I let go of him.

Orange scratches his head and cocks it off to the side, "Jbw dl oyb, ovw pw elpxw il mblxc'w ebbf ipek px apypcbhm pcrdbyl."

"H xlcxl rbvy oybwily hx oljhcchcj wb nbdl wb wlydx thwi tib il pyl. Il'x hx khcpeer bc wil apwi wb ilpehcj." I don't know what Rat said but he's smiling at me. Why do I feel like a little kid that just told his father he has all 'A's on his report card? Why is he so proud of me? And why did Blue just pat me on shell? I can't help but smile. They have to know I'm acting like my old self again, why else would they be so happy? Don't worry guys, I'm starting to remember. Little by little I'll remember all of you and life can get back to the way it was.

"Rbv xibvem pnw px cbydpe px abxxhoel pybvcm ihd. Hw dhjiw ilea wb gbj ihx dldbyr." I almost forgot that Lady and Man were in here with us. Even they are positively beaming at me. I wonder if they are considered part of the fami-

Umm… I definitely don't like it when Raph and Orange give each other sideways glances and then get those sinister looking smiles. What are those two up to now? "H'ul jbw gvxw wil hmlp Payhe. Dhflr, jlw wil abanbyc, Mbyjwbx pcm xbmpx." Raph's thrown his arm over my shoulders and is guiding me out of the dojo. Okay, he's pushed me down on the couch and tells me to stay. I can live with that. That's a big DVD collection, there must be at least two hundred DVD's in that cabinet! Which one is he pul- Ah! A bowl of Doritos! A big bowl of Doritos. Umm… I hope you know I can't eat these all on my own right Blue? Please tell me I'm going to share them 'cause I'll make myself sick trying to eat these all. I think there are at least three bags here. Is he going to get something else? I hope it's not more food. There's more then enough food in this bowl in my lap.

"Tl'tl jbhcj wb ilpm ibdl." Are Man and Lady leaving? "Xbdl bk vx pnwvpeer ipul wb jb wb tbyf wbdbyybt."

Raph flops down next to me on the couch and waves the remote lazily at them. "Tipwluly, Npxl. Tl'ee dpfl rbv tpwni wil clsw bcl." With a wave and what I can only assume are them saying goodbye, they head out the door. Rat's not here either. I think he's in his room. At least the light is on the other side of the screen so that's a safe assumption. Blue's back with sodas, a lot of sodas, before flopping down on the far side of the couch leaving room between us. At least we'll have something to wa- Shell! I glare at Orange as I knock the popcorn off my shoulder. Doesn't he know anything about physics?! Kinetic Energy? Potential Energy? Hello? When one does a front flip over the back of a couch with a bowl of popcorn there would disastrous results to begin with but when the couch already has a bowl full of Doritos on it the results are even more catastrophic. I think I have popcorn down my shell.

Orange sticks his foot out and flips one of the many red cans of soda at Blue. "Nbfl kby Elb." His foot snakes out again and flips a maroon colored can to Red who catches it one handed while he flicks through the previews at the beginning of the movie. "My. Alaaly kby Ypai." Ahh! Soda can! I juggle the can of soda that early hit me in the face. Jeez, thanks Orange, give me a heart attack why don't you. Hmm… maybe if that can of soda had hit me in the face I would have remembered who Orange was. I don't think I would have been to happy getting clocked in the face by a flying soda can even if I did remember who he was. "Xbyyr pobvw wipw Mbc. Pw elpxw rbv ipul rbvy Xayhwl." Yeah, you better be squeaking right about now. I'm not one for violent reactions but even I would have chased you all over the lair trying to beat you with a couch cushion for that. He gives me that goofy grin before flipping a bright green can up for himself. "Pcm p Dbvcwphc Mlt kby rbvyx wyver." He pops the can and holds it up in a mock toast. "H, Dhnilepcjleb Ipdpwb, ilyl or mlnyll wipw tl jlw wihx Gpdlx Obcm dpypwibc vcmlytpr pcm ibalkveer ilea Mbcchl yldldbly xbdlwihcj hdabywpcw ehfl… vdd… dl! Nillyx!" Wow, we're even clinking cans together. One big gulp of soda all at the same time and then Raph hits the play button.

Let the movie begin.

…

I like movies. Seriously, I can't get enough of them sometimes but even I have to call it quits after watching a marathon of six James Bond movies in a row. I didn't know that Orange could even sit still long enough for one movie let alone five in a row. Good thing we're stopping for now, we spent almost the entire afternoon and night watching movies. Well, it's only nine so it's not that late. Of course after they're done cleaning the living room it'll probably be midnight. I wish they would let me help them. I did start the popcorn fight with Orange that ended with all of us at different corners of the living room chucking popcorn and Doritos around but the minute I tried to help Blue just shooed me out. I sigh to myself as I head for the staircase and my room. Nothing left to really do but go to bed. I hope I don't have insomnia again tonight.

Hmm? Who's in the dojo? Raph and them are still in the living room. Oh Orange, don't do that. Smacking Raph in the back of the head with a couch cushion is a ba- "DHFLR!!" And now Raph is going to try and beat him to death with the same cushion while pinning Orange to the couch. At least Blue's there to keep them from killing each other and since Orange is laughing a really don't think I need to get involved. Man and Lady went home so they're not in there. Maybe it's Rat? I turn from the staircase and walk down the short tunnel to the dojo. It's worth checking out.

Yep, it's only Rat. It looks like he's doing either yoga or Tai Chi. Pretty sure it's Tai Chi. He's not trying to twist himself into a pretzel. It looks like he using a series of blocking moves and attack moves only in slow motion. I know he can fight ten times better then any of us but it doesn't help that he's old. I don't think he could take a really hard hit, his bones are too brittle. At least with Tai Chi he can stay strong and relax. Hmm… relax. I could stand to relax a little bit. I think I only got off the couch once for a quick bathroom break during a DVD change. My back is stiff and I know that there is at least one popcorn kernel down the back of my shell.

"Mb rbv thxi wb gbhc dl, dr xbc?" Rat is watching me as I hesitate in the doorway. He's waiting patently as I glance over my shoulder at an echo of a shout drifts down the hall. I can tell that they are out there having fun. I did just spend most of the day hanging out with them, Rat deserves some quality time too. I don't know who he is but the others treat him with respect and he is an elder. You should always respect your elders. I walk across the matted floor and bow to him when I'm standing a few feet in front of him. He bows to me and I can see the sincere smile on his face and his eyes are almost shining as we stand.

I take up the position on his right a few feet away from him so we won't actually run into each other as we practice. I close my eyes, take a deep breath and hold for the count of five. Four. Three. Two. One. Release. Another deep breath but this time I slowly raise my arms as I take the breath and slowly lower them as I release the breath. I feel centered, I open my eyes and glance off to side to see which set we'll be doing tonight.

He brings his hands up slowly, focusing on his movements more then the strength. I follow the simple movements, stepping forward when he does and mimicking the movements in time with him. Yang style is what I think this style is called. I focus on keeping my breathing deep and slow. After all, the entire point of these exercises is to relax. I keep my back as straight as possible with my shell. In away this is a lot like yoga. Both have you focusing on precise muscle control to help increase flexibility and awareness of yourself. Tai chi and yoga come from very different cultures but they are pretty much one in the same.

Wait a second, I just did that wrong. I pause in my movements and try again. Nope. Still doesn't look right. Rat's paused too. He's watching me as I try the move again. Nice to know he's waiting for me but this might take awhile. Huh? What's Rat doing? He manipulates my hands, moving them slowly as he helps me do the maneuver properly. Hmm… Okay, so I'm supposes to rotate my right hand around while I sweep the arm out. Meanwhile, I need to curl my left arm back and bring my fingers together like my hand is a blade. Rat gestures and as if on cue I do the maneuver again without his help. He then takes control of my hands again goes through it, emphasizing that I need to move my hand back more on the right hand and I need to drop my left shoulder more. I think I can do that. He nods slightly and watches my hands as I go through the movements again. His eyes seem to shine as he smiles at me, "Tlee mbcl dr xbc. Hw hx jbbm wb fcbt wipw rbv ipul cbw ebxw rbvy wyphchcj by jlcwel cpwvyl wb wil ibyybyx rbv tlcw wiybvji."

I bow to him. I don't know what he just said but I know he praised me. It's in his eyes which seem to shine with an inner warmth that makes me feel all… fuzzy inside. Yeah, warm fuzzies for me. I stand again, "Thank you,-"

_-"Daddy? I don't feel good…"_

_That's one of the biggest understatements I think I have ever made. I feel down right awful. My nose won't stop running. I'm hot and cold at the same time. My stomach's churning. I've got a killer headache. I'm hurting all over. My throat's itchy and my voice is sounding weird. It really hurts to talk._

_I hate being sick._

_The only good part about being sick is that Daddy put me in his bed. Our bed is just this huge pile of old blankets that we cuddle together in but Daddy's has this weird pad and only one blanket. He does have a pillow though. I like pillows. Dad said one day we'll each have our own beds and when that happens I want a lot of pillows on it. Pillows are so soft._

"_I know, my son." Dad's being really quiet. Guess everyone else went to bed. I wish I could go to sleep but I feel so awful that I don't want to. A cough is building up in my throat. Don't cough. You'll make Daddy worry. I – I can't stop it. I bury my face into the blanket and try to stifle the cough. I can tell by his sigh that it didn't work. He knows that I'm coughing. I hate it when he's worried._

_Daddy's picking me up. Guess he really is worried. He almost never picks us up unless we're hurt or really scared. I'm glad he's keeping the blanket tucked around me. It's so cold. He's cuddling me to his chest with one arm. I nuzzle his furry shoulder. He's so soft and comforting. I could sleep here. "Donatello," I wanna sleep. I keep my eyes closed and press my face into his fur. "My son, you must drink this before it gets much colder." Sorry Daddy, I can't hear you. I really just want to sleep. "It will make you feel better my son. Please, drink." He's right. It does make my throat hurt less and my stomach and headache go away for a bit. I nod slightly and pull away from him enough so that he can press the drink to my lips. At least it's not to hot. It's just right. _

_It feels like hours as he sits there making me sip from the mug before he sets the empty cup off to the side. Did I really just drink that whole thing? It's huge. Daddy's lying us both down in his bed. He looks really tired. He should try to sleep. I try to tell him that but I yawn into the pillow. "Go to sleep my son. I will be right here for you." Yeah I know you will be Dad. I nuzzle his shoulder again and try to ignore the sickness I feel.-_

"-father?" Wait. He's my dad? I look at him with wide eyes. He is. He's my father.

_-I don't understand. I know I'm not a good fighter but why did Master Splinter tell me I should specialize in bojutsu? Did I fail him somehow? He gave everyone else real weapons. Weapons you could do a lot of damage with but he gave me a bo? I'm not really complaining about lack of lethality but why a bo? I'm curious as why he told me I should specialize in bojutsu. If Raphie were over here he would tell me that me being curious only leads to trouble._

_It wouldn't matter if he came over and said that, I'm still going to ask Splinter._

_I walk over to the curtain off part of the lair. I take a moment to listen to them as they play near the television, I don't want anyone of them to disturb this chat. I think they'll be there for a while. It sounds like Tom and Jerry is on. They love that show. "You may enter, Donatello." Whoops. Guess Master Splinter though that I was hesitant to enter his room. I'm not really hesitant just… okay I'm really worried he's going to tell me I'm a horrible ninja or something like that. I try my best. I really do. I'm just not good with all these athletic things._

"_Donatello," The curtain moves slightly and I find myself looking at my Sensei with wide eyes. It's really creepy how he can move without anyone hearing him. Really freaky. I wonder if I'll ever be able to do that one day. If I continue to suck at ninjustu I doubt it. "What is the matter?" How do I ask him if he thinks I'm a terrible ninja without making it sound like its his fault for not training me properly? They guys are getting really loud. I hope none of them come over here and interrupt us. This would just be another thing that the three of them could pick on me about._

"_Donatello." Whoops. I was thinking too much again. Master Splinter has that hard look on his face that he only gets when one of us is trying his patience. I'm not the one to usually get this look. Raphie and Mi- "Come in." Heh, I bow my head slightly as I pass into his private room. I feel like I'm going to my own execution. I can hear the curtain fall back into place with a gentle rustle as I kneel in front of the little half table Sensei has in his room. I wish I could remember what he calls it. I should ask him to teach me some more Japanese later, if he hasn't kicked me out of the lair for disrespecting him. "Now," he kneels on the other half of the table from me. "What is the matter, my son?"_

_I wish I could swallow past the lump in my throat. "Sensei, I – I don't think I'm a very good ninja and I was wondering if you want me to stop practicing and disappointing you." There you go. Now there is no blame laid at Master Splinter's teaching skills. I just wish I didn't make myself sound quite so pathetic. _

"_Why would you think that I am disappointed in you, my son?" Awww… Shell he sounds upset and he's frowning slightly. Not good _

"_It's not about your, teachings or anything, Sensei. You're a wonderful teacher. I'm really not that good so I was wondering if I should s-" Uh oh, he's holding his hands up to stop me from rambling. This was a bad idea. _

"_Does this have to do with the weapons I believe you should train in, my son?" Shell, he's good. How does he do that? At least he's smiling now. "Donatello, I gave each of you a different weapon to train in and a different specialty to best fit your personalities. You, my son, are the gentlest among your brothers and I have seen your hesitation in practice. You would never strike out at someone unless they came at you first. You are a defender. A pacifist. You only participate in practice because I ask it of you."_

"_That's not true!" Shell, I understand why I have to train. If a human even got a hold of me… "I… It's just that…"_

"_Donatello. I know you understand the depth of your training more then your brothers but I also know that you would rather be learning more about the world around you. If you could I know that you would walk about without a weapon and learn about everything around you. That is precisely why you should learn to use a bo staff. You don't like to fight. You would only fight to defend yourself, or family, and if you could you would never wear a weapon to begin with. That is why I believe you should train in bojutsu."_

_What does he mean by I don't have to wear a weapon? I would have to. What if I was attacked? "Sensei, I mean no disrespect but why would I not need to wear a weapon to defend myself. You've been training us in unarmed combat but if I was attacked by someone with a weapon of their own how could I defend myself without a weapon of my own?"_

_He has that knowing smile on his face again. "The bo staff is one of the easiest weapons to find and the most versatile. This is why many farmers and peasants began to carry them in feudal Japan. __In 1477, when the Emperor Sho Shin of the second Sho dynasty came into power, he placed__ a band on blades to prevent a revolt. With it a crime to carry any form of blades, many took up the bo staff to protect themselves. Anything roughly six feet long can be wielded as a bo, my son. A broom, walking stick, tree branch, metal pipe, it doesn't matter. Next time we go foraging together keep a count on how many possible bo staffs you see laying about in the tunnels, my son. I think you will be pleasantly amazed on how easy it would be to find a weapon if you were without your own."_

_I'm speechless. I guess Sensei really though it through on which weapons were best suited for us.-_

My Sensei.

_-I wouldn't do that if I were you. Just go the other way. That's it. Go on. There is nothing at all interesting down here. Nothing. Nada. No. Go the other way. The other other way. Left, take a left. No my left not yours! Shell… Can't something go right for me for once? Just for once? Stupid turtle luck, I think its worst then Murphy's law sometimes. Alright, Mr. Foot ninja, if your so eager to come over to the darken corner of the warehouse then I will knock your jaw to the other side of your head._

_I lightly grip my bo in my hand as the Foot soldier draws closer and closer to our hidey hole. It's actually a very stupid idea to knock him out. One of his Foot buddies will no doubt notice he's missing and come looking for him. One ninja I can take but several? No way. I'm to beaten and exhausted to do much of anything right now. That's why Raph left me hiding here in behind these crates with Master Splinter to go find the others. Neither of us are in any condition to move. At least not fast anyways. _

_I glance over my shoulder briefly to see how Sensei is holding up. He's breathing seems off, like it's painful for him to even take a breath. I don't even want to think about what kind of injuries he has inside him. His arms are still resting limply in his lap. The tonfas were slammed right into the pressure points on his shoulders. He can't use his arms very well. Raph had to carry him here. _

_Raph was also nearly carrying me here. There's something seriously wrong with my right shoulder. It hurts to move it, rotate it, even letting it stay in a static position makes it hurt. I just can't win. Plus, I had to try and hack into the ships radio and get a message back to one of our friends' state side for some help. Which meant little to no sleep as I tried to get into the back of the radio assemble and then make it so the radio men didn't realize I was broadcasting and S.O.S. No sleep for the weary. We're in London, England. On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean after a big fight with the Foot, injured and aching. There's no way this could get worst. Unless the sewers in London are too small for us to fit in. Then we would be in serious trouble._

_A soft noise makes me look back towards the Foot… ninjas? Shell, I think that first Foot buddies friends decided to help him check the all concealing shadows in the corner. Great, there's no way I'm going to be able to take them all down on my own and protect Master Splinter. I guess I'll have to take the fight to them. I'm not going to be able to use my right arm effectively in combat. As it is it will only get in my way. I take a second to tuck it into my belt before taking my bo up in my left hand and creeping towards them. As long as I'm far enough away from the shadows they hopefully won't look back there and see Splinter. _

_Okay I'm a few feet from the lead ninja and… NOW! I trust my bo right into the side of his chin effectively dropping him where he stood. One down, seven to go. I twist the bo around an blocked a sword then was blindly shoved into the darkness. There is definitely a reason why the bo is a two handed weapon. I'm going to get my shell kicked by these guys. As long as I stay in the shadows they shouldn't be able to pin point my location so I should be able to out maneuver th-_

_A cry escapes my lips and my bo clatters away out of my reach. Fighting with one arm sucks! I can feel the bruises forming on my arm already from where that punk grabbed me and threw me out into the open. Their on me before I can even get up onto my hand and knees. Jerks. I blade is pressed against my neck. Don't worry, you can do what you want with me just ignore the giant rat in the corner and I'll do whatever you want me to. _

_A sudden shout comes from behind me and there is a clash of steel. Did Raph find the guys and brought them back? The blade at my throat is gone and I watch as a ninja is thrown like a rag doll into some crates, splintering them and causing them to cave in on themselves and him. That had to hurt. I'm up on my knees when a furry paw rests on my shoulder. "Master Splinter?" I have to ask in disbelief even as I look at him. He was unconscious just a few minutes ago and he was able to take down those Foot ninja without breaking a sweat. How the shell can he use his arms again?!_

_He gives me his knowing smile. "There is much that you and your brothers must learn about meditation as well as pressure points." The smile fell from his faces as he tilted his head off to one side and listened. Are those more Foot ninjas? "Come. We must hurry, my son." Trust me, Sensei, you won't have to tell me twice.-_

Always there when I least expect it.

_-This is all my fault. I punch the bag in front of me with a huff of frustration. If I had been a better ninja, if I hadn't been knocked out, then none of this would have happened. They wouldn't have been caught and Raph wouldn't be laying in sickbay with his arm dislocated __**and**__ looking like he lost a fight with a wood chipper and a lawnmower. I don't usually take out my anger on the punching bag but this is all my fault. I should have trained better. I should have known that we had walked into a trap. I saw the motion sensors. A growl works its way out my throat. That was just a little unlike me. I should have known!_

"_Donatello." Huh? Sensei? I thought he was with Raph. Did he come out here to tell me how much I screwed up? Shell, he has to be so disappointed in me. I turn to him and fall to me knees. I deserve his punishment, whatever it is. One of my brothers is seriously hurt and the other two are probably being tortured or experimented on. All because I screwed up. _

"_Sensei… I'm sorry I disappointed you." I place my forehead on my hands as they rest in front of me on the mats. I don't even think I can apologize for this. I disappointed him and his training. I went down so fas-_

"_I'm not disappointed in you, my son. Raise." I do as he says but I stay kneeling before him. He sighs at me, "I do not believe that there are ay apologizes needed on this matter. The only thing that puzzles me is why you are not readying to rescue your brothers." _

_Why does he think that? "I'll screw up again. There are too many of those guys and they'll be waiting for me to try and rescue them. There's no way Raph will even be able to sit up by this evening to help me. I'll have to go in alone and if I'm cornered I'm not a good enough fighter to be able to get away. Then they'll have three of us."_

"_You are an excellent fighter Donatello. What you lack in prowess you make up for by using your mind."_

_Yeah but my brains did little to help me help them fight. "I'm not good enough to take them on my own Sensei. Even if you helped me I'm just not good enough to be able to fight my way to them. I'm sorry I failed you."_

"_You have never failed me, Donatello. You have never been good at combat but I will always be amazed at your skills off the battlefield. What you have accomplished in your life makes me proud to be called your father." His fingers come under my chin and force me to look him in the eyes. "Never believe that I am disappointed in your abilities, my son. There is so much more to each of you then just you're fighting abilities. Even if you couldn't fight, I would and will always be proud of you Donatello."_

_My eyes are stinging and I snap them close when he releases my chin. I know he's right but if I had been good enou- huh? Splinter has wrapped his arms around me, holding me as close as he can. It like when I was still a little turtle and upset because I stunk at fighting. I can't stop the tears as I lean into him. Shell, this is so messed up. "Come, my son," he whispers into my ear a few moments later as the tears start to finally ebb. "It's time we retrieved your brothers and brought them home."-_

A voice of wisdom I can always count on.

A shoulder that's always there to cry on.

An ear that will listen to what ever I have to say.

He's my adoptive father.

My teacher.

"Master Splinter?" I whispered. He's giving me this look as if to say 'what's wrong'. I can't belie-

"AAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!" I hear myself scream as I clutch at my head in pain. It's on fire. I feel like my mind is on fire. Ow, shell, I fell over again. I'm on the mats sprawled out and shivering like crazy. He's yelling. He's worried. Shell, can his heart even take this kind of stress? I want to faint but I… I can't. I have to see if he's okay. Make sure he doesn't… don't think about that, focus on getting up.

I move slowly trying to get my hands underneath me enough to push me up. I've got to make sure he doesn't have a heart attack. Arms slide under me. Oh shell, don't… ugh… that was a very unpleasant sensation. Like a combination of vertigo and nausea times forty five as I'm helped up and rolled over on my shell. I don't think they realize I'm still awake. Well, kind of awake. I can't move, I'm shivering like crazy and feeling as if I just ran a marathon. I'm so tired. Raph and Blue are on either side of me, holding me up and half sandwiching me between them. That's okay. It's warmer this way. Orange is hovering over Blue shoulders but where's Splinter? I don- oh, he's behind me. I can feel his fingers pressing deep into the back of my neck and the shivering seems to lessen with every pressure point he pushes on. I'm beginning to feel a lot better.

I'm still really tired. I wish I didn't feel like a worn out wash rag. I should see if I can sit up or at least move. A moan escapes me as I try to sit up. That's a bad idea. Blue's pressing his hand over my chest. Not to worry I have no interest in try to move anytime soon, Blue. At least I can move my head. My forehead is resting against Red's arm now. Hmm… That reminds me. "Y'know Raph," I mumble into his arm. "You may want to beat Saka up for what he did to me but I have a feeling you're going to be pulling me off him. He's going to pay for this." Oh yes, he will pay. He'll pay for making me forget my father.


	17. Chapter 17: Beware an Orange Flame

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Yeah, yeah… this chapter took me forever too and I really don't have a good excuse. I could say Mikey hid my laptop as a practical joke and forgot where he hid it but that's not very believable. Hopefully, this chapter is well worth the wait… haven't I said that before?_

_Second Daughter of Eve did point out a good fact. No, Don didn't understand the movie, sorry if I didn't make that clear. I figured that a James Bond movie is pretty hard to forget especially if you've seen it a lot. I figured Don would like the James Bond movies because of all the high tech and secret gadgetry that could possibly give him ideas for his own inventions. _

_This chapter is dedicated to Puldoh just because she likes Mikey torture and I promised this to her ages ago._

Chapter Seventeen: Beware an Orange Flame

I think that the next time I unintentionally decide to have a… relapse I'll pass out instead of trying to stay awake. It's so much easier and ten times less painful. I'm not in any physical pain. Well, okay that's a lie. My head is killing me. It really does feel like someone lit my brain on fire. And I'm achy all over. It seems that when I have one of these episodes my brain becomes overloaded with all the new information it's suddenly received, the combination of the shock and confusion cause me to have something similar to a seizure. It's not like an actual seizure, more like my muscles start to sporadically twitch on their own at a rapid pace making it feel like I'm shivering. No wonder everyone freaks when I collapse like this. If it was a real seizure then I'm sure someone would have had a heart attack by now or in the very least two bleeding ulcers a piece. After I'm done shivering, I'm limp as a rag and can't seem to gather the strength to move. It's all I can do to keep my eyes open to tiny silts so I have some idea of what's going on around me. The shivering seems to sap all my strength and the cold feeling is more due to the fact that my nerves are just as tired as my muscles and I go completely numb. Yeah, this really does suck. All this confusion and pain, however, doesn't amount to nearly a quarter of how it feels to listen to my family panic around me.

They're scared. They're all honestly scared for me. It's nice to know that my father and at least one of my brothers are with me. If we look alike and they live here with the three of us, does that mean Blue and Orange are my brothers too? It… sounds right. I just wish I knew who was who and what there names are. That would be a huge help. Talking would be an even better help because then I could just tell them I'm alright instead of laying in Raph's and Blue's arms trembling faintly. It seems that the 'attack' is pretty much done with and I can remember pretty much everything that involves Master Splinter. I can remember everything about Raph too, but I don't even recognize Orange and Blue since before they were chasing me around on the rooftops over the city. It's so weird.

Raph's moving to lift me again. Ten bucks says he's taking me to the couch. For such a tough guy he can be a real softy, especially when I'm involved. Weird. I sigh into his shoulder as he stands. Why is he always the one to carrying me? I know Blue and Orange can both pick me up. I'm really not that heavy and I know that they are strong. Maybe not as strong as Raph but more then strong enough to lift me and carry me into the other room. I think that the only reason I'm as heavy as I am is because of my shell.

Hey, what a surprise, Raph's putting me on the couch. Fancy that. It's weird being awake and not able to move on my own. It's almost like I was paralyzed. That's a scary though. How would I be able to do anything? At least I can still think… except I can't remember anything… shell. This really does suck.

After Raph gently disposes me on the couch, Orange come bouncing out of nowhere with a stricken look on his face and wraps me in a blanket. I think this is the one off my bed. I can just barely make out their voices. What are they saying? OW! Okay, ow. Even trying to think about listening to that garbled language makes my head ring. Anything involving deep though really hurts about now. Maybe I should just fall asleep. Sleep sounds good but the more I learn about what happens after I have a relapse the closer I can come to figuring out what the diagnose and even more importantly, the prognosis. It would be a lot easier if I could read.

What's that strange smell? It smells like… peppermint? No, it's a sharper smell. Wintergreen? Yeah, wintergreen. Why would there be wintergreen in the lair? Master Splinter? What? Shell, I wish I could actually open my eyes more. It would be so much easier to figure out what's going on. As I watch I can just make out Splinter take the contents out of a small container he got from somewhere. Probably his room. He keeps all kind of herbal remedies in his room. His room always smells like a forest because of all those herbs. What's he doing? He's massaging my neck? And shoulders. Whatever that smelly cream is it's heating up the muscles it's being rubbed into. It feels really good. He's using pressure points… stimulating the nerves in my neck and shoulders… making me relax… making me sleepy…

…

I… I fell asleep again didn't I? That figures. I had forgotten that's how Sensei use to put us to sleep after a nightmare. He would pull out that wintergreeny-peppermint thingy and rub it into the back of the neck and –he's denied it every time I asked him- pushes against that bundle of nerves that can knock you out in one push. There's one thing he's absolutely refused to teach us so far, probably because Raph would use it to make Orange shut up when he's being annoying.

Speaking of the hyper turtle brat, Orange is perched on the coffee table watching me intently. When he sees I'm looking at him he gives me a huge smile and waves his hand. Goofball. Still, I can help but mile at him and try to give him a wave of my own but I can't wiggle my hand free. Yeah, it's my blanket and it's been tucked so tightly around me that I feel like I've been tied up. Maybe they want to keep me on the couch by tangling me in the blankets. Wait a minute… I pause struggling against the blanket and level a look on Orange that would have him fussing up in no time. Yeah, his smile is fading. He knows I'm on to him. "Ypai mhm hw!" Orange fly off the coffee table so fast it was nearing hyper sonic.

"Tipw pyl rbv oepdhcj dl kby cbt?" Raph's head peaks over the back of the couch and it only takes a second for him to realize my predicament. "Dhflr, tir hx Mbc xwypaalm wb wil nbvni thwi ihx oepcflw?!" Oh yeah, Raph's mad. He sounds it anyways and now he's growling. Raph launches himself over the couch after Orange who lets out this girlish screech and runs for it. How can he even hit that octave? While I'm glad that Raph is getting revenge for me the least he could have done was free up the blankets a little. Why the shell does Orange have a love for doing origami, anyway? I bet he used those talents to do whatever he did to get this blanket so tight.

"Cllm p ipcm Mbc?" Wipe that smirk off your face Blue or I'll make you eat this blanket. He chuckles at me. I can feel my eyebrow twitching. He can be such a pain in the shell when he wants to be. At least he's kind enough to help untangle me from the blanket unlike the other two turtles I can hear running through the lair saying what I can only assume are death threats and taunts. There, that's better, sweet freedom. Blue beckons me to follow him to the kitchen. Why not? I'm kind of hungry, anyways.

I wonder what time it is. It's definitely taken me less time to recover from this massive attack then the other two. When I remembered myself it was by far the worst. I was down and out for most of the night and part of the day. When I remembered Raph it had been about eight or ten hours max before I was able to walk around. This time it's been about… Shell! It's almost one? That means I've been out for about six hours, seven max. The duration of my recovery is taking less time. That's a good sign. Maybe I'll remember everything soon? Knowing my luck I'll end up forgetting everything again. I really have some bad luck.

Master Splinter is in the kitchen and he gives me a wide smile as Blue tells me to sit. He's drinking tea. I wonder if I can- oh, tea from above. I give Blue a small bow at the table. He read my mind. Splinter's still smiling at me. I know now that he's proud of me. Whether it's for how I did in his makeshift Tai Chi lesson or the fact that I'm already awake I don't know.

What was that?! Master Splinter, Blue and I all turn and look towards the dojo where a racket of epic proportions is finally dieing down. It sounds like a weapons rack just came of the wall. I can just barely make out Orange and Raph arguing with each other. I bet they're blaming the other for knocking the rack over. Neither Blue nor Master Splinter look very happy about the noises coming from the dojo. "H'ee wlcm wb wihx," Blue grumbles and marches off towards the dojo with an obvious purpose. I'm so glad I'm not one of the turtles in that room, Blue can be very scary when he wants to be.

I turn back to my tea and stare at the steam rising out of the cup. Now what? I'm just about ready for bed. I don't care if I just woke up, it feels like I've been rung out and stretched thin. All my muscles hurt and my head is still throbbing. I wonder if I can convince someone to let me take some aspirin or something. As I'm taking a cautious sip from the mug, I notice that Splinter is still watching my every movement. I can see the worry in his eyes. Oh father… what can I do to put you at ease? I'm fine. Really.

I set my tea down and reach over, taking one of his gnarled paws into my hand. "I know you can't understand me Sensei but trust me. I am getting better. I'll pull through this. Then I'll stop Doctor Saka from ever doing this again. He'll pay for kidnapping me. He'll pay for every day that I can't remember. He'll pay from making me forget my family. Trust me father, he'll wish he never even thought of this little experiment of his when I get through with him." I can't help but give him a soft smile. "Either that or Raph will drag him off to some corner of the city and make him wish he was never born." He has been watching my eyes intently through my small speech. I can tell that he knows I'm trying to reassure him and that little bit of pride that's there makes me feel so much better. We may not be able to understand each other but he recognizes that I am in here. I just can't communicate with him well.

Oh shell, he looks like he's going to start crying. I slid my chair away from the table and go to him. I kneel down next to his seat and hold him close. Father… that shell head is going to pay for making me put my family through this. I can feel Splinter holding my just as close. I'm really not looking forward to being cried on again but anything I can do for my family -to make this easier on them- I'll do it. Well… if Man cries on my shoulder I think it would creep me out…

"Dr xbc," Master Splinter's body is shaking in my arms. I can tell he's trying his hardest not to cry but a single drop of wetness on my shoulder proves that even though he doesn't like us to know about them, he has his weak moments too. "Dr abby xbc." I'm actually surprised that it's taken him this long to cry. He does spend a lot of time alone in his room and I know he can't be meditating the entire time. Oh Sensei… what have you been doing behind that closed door? I can feel the tears building up in my eyes. I don't even want to think about that. "Mbcpwleeb." I bury my face in his kimono. Don't cry. Don't cry. Awww… shell.

I don't know how long I stayed there with my faced buried into his shoulder sobbing. I can't believe how selfish I've been. I've been so obsessed with trying to remember who everyone was and how to communicate with them that I never even thought about how they must feel going through all this. Raph crying into my shoulder should've been my first clue. Raph only cries when something bad has happened and me losing my memory is a bad thing. I told him one time that my biggest fear would be to lose my mind and I have. I figured out what Splinter's deepest fear is. When we were all sitting down watching The Two Towers, Splinter had to leave the room when King Théoden said that no father should ever have to bury his son.

Splinter's always been afraid of losing one of us and, in reality, even though I am here, I'm not.

I'm causing him to live through his worst nightmare.

No, I'm not.

Saka is.

He's going to pay for this!

My anger helps me to calm down enough that the tears stop and I can breath normally again. Raph better be with me when we go after Saka so he can pry me off that heartless man. I want him to pay for this but if I get my hands on him first he'll be down and out before I can blink. There wouldn't be much pay back in that. Maybe I should let my brothers take him out first. But… What if he caught one of them? Would he do the same thing he did to me? Saka did say he wanted me in particular. I wonder why. If that's the case he might just kill one of the others if he caught them. I'll have to figure out a way to keep my brothers safe and take Saka out before he can do anything else to us.

Splinter's been rubbing my shell the entire time I had been crying into his robes but stops when I lift my head off his shoulders. "Sorry Sensei," I mutter as I gently pull myself free from him. I can tell he does want to let me go but he does anyways. Shell, my knees hurt from kneeling on the concrete for so long. How long was it anyways? Fifteen minutes, I need new knee pads if it has only taken that long for my knees to feel like they've been beaten with a sledge hammer. I sit back in my chair and rub at me knees before turning ba- Oh prefect! My tea is cold!

Splinter lightly chuckles at me. I guess I gave the tea an absolute disgusted look as I picked it up and realized the cup was cold. He stands from his chair and walks towards the counter and the tea pot sitting there. He really doesn't have to do that for me- or I'll let him because he gave me one scary look when I started to get out of the chair. Don't worry Sensei, I wouldn't move because I know how much shell you can kick with that walking stick.

A few moments later we're both sipping at hot tea again. I can taste the chamomile in this. I wonder if it's possible to ingest enough chamomile to make you sick. By the time I get all my memories back I'm pretty sure I will find out. Everyone seems to be trying to overdose me on this stuff. Well, Mother Hen Blue and Splinter are trying at least. I can't see Raph trying to give me any and Orange would make me drink it if he was told to. Speaking of the other three turtles, they all just came out of the dojo. Judging by the sober expression on Orange's face and the laughter in his eyes, whatever had gone crash in the dojo was worth it. Raph looks like he's trying to burn a hole through the back of Orange's head. Blue is the last to leave the room and watches the other two turtles with a critical eye as the head up the staircase and into their rooms.

Oh my shell, he sent them to their rooms. That's rich. I can't wait till I can talk to them again. I'm so rubbing that into their faces. Blue's looking at me while I snicker at my unfortunate brothers. Why is he- oh shell, me too! I can tell be the smirk on his lips that he's joking as he points to me then upstairs. That's not fair I didn't do anything! "Elbcpymb, wilyl hx pc bem xprhcj wipw xprx thwi jylpw abtly nbdlx jylpw ylxabcxhoehwer." Yeah, go and get him Master Splinter!

"Tpxc'w wipw kybd bcl bk Dhflr'x xvalyilyb dbuhlx?" Don't try an act innocent now. Splinter's onto you now.

"Gvxw olnpvxl hw tpx xphm hc p dbuhl mblx cbw dlpc hw hxc'w tbywi wpfhcj wb ilpyw. Jb wb rbvy ybbd." Why's Splinter pointing upstairs?

"TIPW?!" I can't help it. I burst out laughing at Blue's face. Obviously fearless isn't sent to his room very often. Fearless? Where did that come from? I pause in my laughing and just look at him. I know he's called fearless… something but what. He's looking at me like I'm crazy. Actually considering how I've been acting I'm surprised that they haven't locked me up in a padded room with a nice, tight white jacket. "Mbcchl? Pyl rbv bfpr?" He sounds worried, sorry Blue I guess I spaced out there for a little longer then I should have.

I try to put my cup in the sink only to have Splinter shoo me out of the kitchen. Being waited on hand and foot and not being allowed to clean up my own messes is starting to get to me. Blue is still watching me strangely as I walk by him heading towards the stairs. "Relax, Blue. I'm just trying to induce my memories of you and fall over on the floor so you can all panic again." I punch him lightly in the shoulder. "Lighten up." He may not be able to understand me but I can tell that small affection punch to his shoulder made him feel marginally better. Now it's time for sleep and hopefully new memories for tomorrow.

…

I sigh as I hop over the railing and walk into the kitchen. The coffee is already done brewing. Raph must have started it before he went into the shower. Orange might've started it, judging by how he's shoveling the cereal into his mouth he definitely has been in the kitchen for awhile. He's also fascinated by the comics. He mutters something as I walk by which I can only assume to be a greetings and go about making myself coffee and a bagel. That's the breakfast of champion's right there. Or geeks.

Blue walks into the kitchen as I lean against the counter nursing the first of many coffees while waiting for my bagel to toast. You can glare at me all you want Blue but I refuse to give up coffee for tea! Tea is meant for relaxing not waking up and I really need to wake. I hate mornings. Bagel's done! I love strawberry flavored cream cheese. Whoever created it should win the Nobel Prize. I slide into my chair with my second cup of coffee and bagel. Where are the Editorials? Here they are. Let's see wha- why is Orange snickering at me. Oh…

I look at the garbled writing before looking at Orange who can't see to help it anymore and burst out laughing at me. He's pointing his finger and everything. I think Blue's trying to hide a smile behind his tea cup. I roll the paper up one handed before smacking Orange in the head with it. "It's not funny," I snap failing to hold back a smile at the strange squawking noise he makes. I'm going to run some tests later and see if he shares common DNA with a parrot. Blue's definitely trying not to laugh so I lean over and quickly smack him in the head with the newspaper. I got him before he could react too. "Don't encourage him." Why so shocked Blue? I can hit you too. Not that I'm going to repeat it anytime soon so you can wipe the floor with me in the dojo. Mmm… Bagel.

Raph walks into the kitchen smelling like soap and looking awake. I doubt he's actually awake judging by the way he slumps into the chair next to me. I wonder if he wants some coffee. I tap him on the shoulder and the odd grunt I get is all I need to know that Raph is indeed half asleep. I prod his shoulder again and this time I'm rewarded with an eye peaking over a massive bicep with murder written all through it. I point at the coffee cup and then him. He grunts again and shakes his head no before he buries his head in his arms. I wonder if it's possible to die from mornings. If it is, Raph is going critical.

The tight tapping of a walking stick on the concrete and a near silent shuffling of footsteps comes closer. Splinter's up. He walks just behind my chair, heading for the tea pot, humming what sounds like a lullaby under his breath. Pouring himself a cup of tea he takes his place between Blue and Orange on the opposite side of the table from me. That's new. Usually he goes and watches his soap operas during breakfast. Not that he eats anything at breakfast. I'll have to talk to him about that again. It's so unhealthy. Of course, I have to be able to talk again before I can do that. So here we sit, waiting for Splinter to be done his tea so we can go through early morning practice. It's nice. We're all just sitting here in companionable silence -which is a first for Orange- with only the sounds of eating and the random spoon clinking against the bowl breaking the silence. It's claming and in a way I wish it could last forever.

Unfortunately, Splinter is still our Sensei and as he stands from the table we all know that it's time and begin to clean up our places at the table. Raph just sits there still resting and Blue pokes him in the shoulder to remind him it was time to wake and do something. "Dhnilepcjleb, hckbyd rbvy orbwily wipw il hx ylehlulm kybd aypnwhnl wbmpr." Whatever Splinter is saying is directed at me. Why else would he glance at me quickly before returning his eyes to Orange? "Dhxx B'Clhe olehlulx wipw ihx xlhqvylx npc ol npvxl or airxhnpe pnwhuhwr."

"Pcm wlee ihd cbw wb dpfl pcbwily abw bk nbkkll." Blue says as he follows Raph towards the dojo. "Il'x ipm dbyl wilc lcbvji."

"Jbwwnip!" Orange hollers as he catches at my elbow to prevent me from heading to the dojo. What now? He points toward the dojo, does a few quick punches into thin air, and then shakes his head no. Somehow I knew I wasn't going to be allowed to practice with them. He's pointing at the coffee pot now and does a cutting motion with his hand. I've only had two cups! How can you expect me to function today on just to cups?! I glare over at the dojo, Blue's going to pay for this.

"Mbc," I look back at Orange. He points towards himself, punches at the air again, points towards Blue's shell as it vanishes down the hall to the dojo and then points to me with a wink. I seriously doubt you can beat him up for me Orange but it's a nice thought. He gives me a quick thumbs up which I return just as quick as he heads off to practice.

Now what? I'm definitely going to drink the rest of the pot of coffee. Seven cups should help keep me awake until after lunch then I'll have to figure out a way to make another pot with out Blue freaking out. I could make it over the Bunsen burn in the workshop again and say it was an experiment but since I've been banded from playing with chemicals I doubt they'll be happy about me using the chemistry gear in the workshop. Knowing my luck they'll band me from there too.

I guess I could watch TV but there's nothing on this time of morning except for paid programs, soap operas, and cartoon shows designed for preschoolers. I've no interest in listening to people trying to sell cheep plastic inventions that break within days of their first use –I've been to the junk yard enough to know that for a fact- and they would definitely think I have flipped if they caught me watching a large purple dinosaur sing to children on TV. Well Raph would think that, Orange would just start laughing hysterically, and Blue and father would frown with a mixture of confusion and worry. Soap operas make so little sense anyways that it'll be impossible for me to even have half an idea of what's going on without understanding them.

Okay, so watching television is out of the question. I can't read so that's out of the question. I won't even bother trying to tinker in my lab, hopefully, that will help ease everyone's mind that I'm not going to blow myself up again. Hmm… I guess I could go and play some of those arcade games. That could be fun. I may not be able to understand the words in the games but, like the movies last night, I won't need to understand what is happening in the games. Pac-Man and James Bond are two very unforgettable things. Of course, after watching the movies about one hundred times and beating Pac-Man on expert just as much, I might be able to do these in my sleep.

I set my coffee on the game but turn to the half pipe instead. I use to skateboard a lot. I still do every now and then but not half as much as I use to. I wonder if I still have it in me to board. I reach down and pick up a battered skateboard that's bottom has been so torn up from grinding that it's impossible to tell what the print is. All I can tell is that the bottom is faded orange. It's kind of ironic if you ask me. This is his favorite board-

-_The battered orange board is slammed forcibly off the floor. Surprisingly it doesn't break. "The real issue here is why don't __**you**__ care!"-_

What?

_-"You're always locking yourself away in your little play room! It's like you don't care about any of us! Why do you ever bother coming out of there unless it's to be a pompous, egotistical, __megalomaniac__! Don't look at me like that! I'm not stupid! Despite what you may think!"_

"_I… I never said you were stupid… I… Maybe… Maybe… FINE__! IF THAT'S THE WAY YOU FEEL MAYBE I SHOULD JUST GO BACK TO MY PLAYROOM!"-_

Why did he say that? Why would Orange act like that? They all were, they were all yelling at me. What did I do? How did I piss everyone off so bad? I know Orange didn't mean to say that. He covered his mouth with both hands and had this wide terrified look on his face afterwards. He knew what to say to make it hurt more. It's like he stabbed me. It was a little gratifying to see everyone so surprised at my little outburst. I have never before yelled like that at a fight but I've never had Orange tear into me like that before either. Shell, it hurts.

I got to get away from him. I've got to go. I turn and quickly walk away from the half pipe, heading for the stairs. Just go somewhere, somewhere far away where I can calm down. Shell, I love him. He's my brother. Raph maybe my guardian angel but Orange is the one I go to when I'm upset. Him yelling that at me was like cutting open my heart and pouring salt and vinegar into the wound. Shell, I'm crying again. I grab the handle and pull it down to ope-

What's that sound? It sounds like an alarm. Huh? What's this little box doing here next to the door controls? I didn't put that there. "MBCPWLEEB!!" Why does Raph sound scared? I look over my shoulder just in time to see him come flying out of the dojo with Orange and Blue on his heels. Shell, the alarm is for opening the door! Duh! I don't want to deal with them right now. I just want to be alone. I bolt out the open door. Shell, now what? I can't out run all three of them. What do I do? What the shell just banged off my shin?! That hurt!

Orange's skateboard!

All sewer drains have a pitch of half an inch every three feet. Combined with my forward momentum and weight I should be able to generate enough speed to get out of here before they catch me. Let's see… the pitch runs downward this way. A couple of running steps, throw the board slightly out in front of me so that the wheels hit the pipes floor, jump and Huston we have ignition. If I stay low I'll have less wind resistance to deal with and a lower center of gravity to help me keep my balance. I haven't been sewer boarding in ages. I need to be careful or I could seriously hurt myself.

"MBCCHL!" Sorry Raph, I'm not coming back anytime soon and I have no plans on stopping soon either. I have a bad feeling I'll have a wipe out if I try and stop this board. It's moving along at a really good clip. A little faster then I feel comfortable with. If I stand up I should be able to slow down a little. Now I just have to keep my balance. Oh… Shell…

STAIRCASE!!

WHO THE SHELL DECIDED TO PUT A STAIRCASE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SEWERS?!

Okay, so being a ninja isn't just handy for kicking the butt's of bad guys galore but also for saving you from breaking up neck when you're hurling at high speeds towards a staircase. If it wasn't for all the balancing exercises that Splinter had us do when we were younger, I would be little more then paste on the wall. It's a little noisy though but I can't deny its effectiveness. Now at least I know why the bottom of this board is so torn up. Grinding down the random staircases in the sewers would tear up anyone's board.

Oh good, solid pipe is coming up again. Bend at the knees and jump. Go me, I actually stuck the landing after the board flipped over a couple of times. Hmm… still coasting along. If I remember right, I can get to the junkyard this way. Maybe I should go and see if there are any new parts there. Today is trash day. I think. There's no telling what new goodies are buried in the piles.

Wait a second, that's what happened before I disappeared wasn't it. Yeah… yeah it was. I locked myself in my lab for most of the afternoon and then, when I needed to make a trip to the junkyard, I went alone. I was ambushed there. Then I was taken to the lab and Saka did whatever to me to erase my mind. The Junkyard is most definitely out of the question. They caught me there once they may just be waiting for me to go back.

There's a… bridge? What's next? A hot dog cart? It could really clean up in this place. Well the tunnel is rounded enough that I should be able to build up the required momentum to jump the bridge or whatever it is. I wonder why there would be one down here, it must have some purpose but- what's that noise? Its sounds like rumbling. No, more like a whistle. Oh shell…

TRAIN!!

I really don't want to try and stop this board. The momentum I was gathering by using a combination of centrifugal forces and gravity has increased the velocity of the board to the point where attempting to stop it will result in a less then pretty splat of me on the bottom of the pipe. I haven't built up the speed required to jump both the train and the bridge. If the train was there I could easily clear the bridge but right now I'll slam right into the side of it. Shell, I was thinking to long! Hey, it's gone. Not a second to spare. I let out a relieved little sigh. If I had been a few second earlier I would be stuck to the side of the subway car. That could have hurt. Shell! My landing!

Ugh!

Unh!

Ow…

Shell…

That was stupid…

And I'm supposed to be the smart one…

I love being a turtle. If it wasn't for my shell I could be a lot worst off. I could've killed myself if I hadn't landed shell first. Still my crash landing has made both my ribs begin to hurt again and I really screwed up my wrist I think. If I only jammed it before and cracked the bones in my knuckles then I think that this time I fractured my wrist. Ow… I can still move my hand but it hurts to try and rotate the wrist. I should try and get up but judging by the pain in my ribs I should wait a bit. At least until the pain subsides some.

I stare up at the piping hanging off the ceiling of the tunnel. Great, now I get to lay out here in the cold dank sewers until I can get up again. Actaully… I think I'm going to need help. I am a turtle and I am on my shell. I really feel exposed like this. Instincts, I suppose. A turtles natural defense is in his shell, laying on his back means he's defenseless. No wonder I'm uncomfortable. Okay, I know you're not going to like this ribs but let's at least roll over onto my side. I hiss slightly as I roll over. That hurts! At least I'm on my side now. I don't feel that exposed anymore. Hey, Mikey's board still in one piece. Good he would have killed me for breaking his favorite board, favorite big brother or not.

Wait…

-_"Michelangelo!"_

"_It wasn't me."_

_I blink at him as he stands there innocently. "Then please, tell me who did this?" I say as I sweep my hand around, gesturing at the destruction surrounding us. _

"_Raph."_

_I rub at my temples with both hands. "Had this been any other room in the lair other then the kitchen, I would have believed you, Mikey. __**And**__ considering you're covered in cake mix and frosting, I'm pretty sure it was you."_

_He shakes his head no, sending cake mix and frosting flying in all directions in the process. "Seriously, dude, I so didn't do this."_

"_Mikey! You're covered in evidence, there is cake mix and frosting everywhere, the stove looks like a bomb went off in it, the fridge is on its side and…" Wait a second. "Where's the toaster?" I know I'm onto something bad when Mikey bites his bottom lip. Ever so slowly he points toward the ceiling with a chocolate batter covered finger. Why- What the… "WHY IS THE TOASTER IMBEDDED IN THE CEILING??"_

"_I don't know." I slam my open palm into my forehead. He can be so frustrating. I pull my hand down my face before leveling a glare at him. He just smiles innocently. Don't even start with me right now, Mikey. Raph has given me enough of a headache today and now I have to go find a new toaster and fix the stove. After a second of me glaring at him, the grin vanishes and he throws up his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright, I'll clean this up and help you fix everything and I'll find a new toaster."_

_I sigh and turn to go only to have him call my name. Great, now what? "What Mikey?"_

"_Your coffee's done."-_

Mikey?

_-This is bad. This is very bad. My bo's gone, snapped in two by that muscle bound thug, and even though I'm no slacker when it comes to hand to hand combat I know that this is going to be one bad fight. I dodge the pipe that some punk was attempting to bash my brains in with, simultaneously kneeing him in the stomach and elbowing him in the back of the neck as he stumbles into his follow through. Did he honestly expect me to just stand there and let him crack my skull open?_

_Uh oh, I know that scream. Nothing good comes from one of Mikey's screams. What did he break now? That crash didn't sound good either. My eyes widen as I quickly take in the scene I've just turned to. Mike's laying on his stomach shakily pushing himself up with his hands. His nunchaku's are nearby, at least he didn't lose them again. Big, mean, steroid man is bearing down on him cracking his knuckles. I thought Raph was dealing with that guy! Shell!_

_I'm without a weapon but I'm still a force to be reckoned with. Master Splinter taught us to be ninjas and to use the element of surprise when we can. I duck behind some crates running over to where the big guy is, using the shadows to conceal my movements. He's winding back to hit him. I'm almost there… Just another sec- NOW!_

_I leap from the shadows and drive my fist as deep as possible into his side. Right were his left kidney should be. Even if he's a walking brick he's going to feel that. Good, he's off balance now. I know that wouldn't be able to stop him but all I was trying to do was get him to bend down slightly. Good, he's as predictable as he is strong. He's even looking my way now with wide eyes. Guess he didn't expect me again. Either that or he realizes that the kick I'm about to give him is going to hurt if I land a direct hit. There! Right into base of his jaw! That'll teach you to try and hurt my little brother!_

_Oh shell! He's grabbed my leg before I could pull it back! Okay, that was an embarrassing noise to make. I doubt anyone will make fun of me for it though. That was defiantly the sound of him crushing my tibia… or my fibula… shell, both probably… Crud! He just broke my leg by squeezing his hand! What the shell kind of steroid did this guy take! Who's yelling at me? It sounds like a pair of voices in unison. They sound worried… angry? Raph and Mikey are yelling at me. Could they stop yelling and make this guy let go of me?!_

_Hey, he let go. Thank shell… now I ha-OW! Ow! Okay, that hurt… Did he just throw me through the wall? He did. Shell he's strong. Hope the guy's can deal with him without me. Who am I kidding? Raph's probably ripping him a new one with his sais by that sounds of it. Is someone coming towards me? "Donnie?!" Mikey? He sound's upset. Is he hurt? His fearful face suddenly appears above me. When did it start to get so dark? "Donnie are you okay? Speak to me bro."_

"_Mikey?" I mumble into the growing darkness. "You okay?"_

"_Dude, you just got your leg crushed, you were thrown through a wall and you want to know if I'm okay?" I can all but see him shaking his head as my eyes slip close. "Dude, you seriously have priority issues," is the last thing I remember him saying as his hands tentatively touch my leg. –_

My little brother.

_-What the shell?! _

_I try to sit up against the sudden weight on my chest only to find myself firmly pinned by my attacker and blankets. I was barely awake when I hear the door open and that was all my attacker needed to get the jump on me. I've got to warn the others before they're attacked too! I open my mouth to yell a warning only to have a three fingered hand clasp it firmly and the weight to shift higher up on my chest. Now I can barely breathe. "It's okay, Donnie. It's me. I didn't mean to scare you. I was just… just… so scared… And… And… I didn't… I couldn't be alone… I'm sorry… I woke you up… I didn't want to… I just needed to be sure…"_

_Okay, Mikey's had a nightmare and is now hyperventilating as he sits on my chest, holding me down and covering my mouth. I wiggle around trying to get my mouth or hand free. It would help if Mike would get off my chest but in his panicked state I don't think he's quite figured out he's crushing the life out of me. Unnn… he seriously needs to lay off he's late night pizza runs and he's Mountain Dew addiction. He can't blame all this extra weight on muscles._

_I'm finally able to worm my hands free of the blankets and out from under him. With one hand I reach up and grab his shoulder while the other one pulls his hand off my mouth. "Mikey," I have to get him to calm down before he faints from lack of oxygen. Well that would make it easier to get him off me. What the shell was his nightmare about that has him so spooked? _

_All it took was me saying his nickname for him to let out a terrified sob and collapse down on me. Note to self: talk to Mikey about going on a diet. Mikey is trying to become one with my chest despite the fact that there is a blanket between us. He's always been kind of clingy since we were kids –always dishing out hugs and friendly slaps on the shell every chance he got- but this is absolutely ridiculous. _

"_Mikey," I hold him just as close, rubbing the back of his neck. He lets out this pathetic sounding whimper and presses his face into my neck. "Its okay, Mikey. I've got you," that's it just calm down. He's not hyperventilating anymore but he's trembling and sniffling. Now he's crying. I nuzzle the top of his head with my cheek and speak in a low, calming voice, "Shhh… Shhh… It's okay Mikey… That's it… just take it easy… I'm right here…"_

_After what seems like ages of me comforting him, he finally releases a shaky sigh. Okay, he should be done crying now. Time to find out what this little midnight wake up call was all about. "Are you feeling better now?" He pulls back just enough to look at me but not to release his choke hold on me. I can just barely feel him nod his head. "Do you want to talk about it?" He takes a moment to think about it. That's it just take your time, Mikey. I rest my hand onto the back of his neck again. I'm right here._

"_Not really," timid, quiet voice and Mikey do not mix well. It just sounds so un-Mikey. "Are you going to make me tell you anyways?"_

_It would help you to put this nightmare behind you. "No, Mikey. If you ever want to talk about it I'm here." He just nods against my shoulder as he puts his head back down. Is he going to lay on top of me all night? _

"_Don?"_

"_Yeah," yep, definitely making Mikey slow down on the pizza consumption. My ribs are beginning to hurt._

"_Can… Can I stay with you the rest of the night?"_

_Definitely a bad nightmare but if it will make him feel better to sleep with me, fine. I reach over to the open space between me and the wall, throwing the blankets back. "Climb in."_

"_Dude you're the best big brother ever," he says as he buries himself in the blankets next to me. At least he sounds more like Mikey now. SHELL! His feet are cold!_

"_Just don't hog all the blankets," I mumble as I shove his ice block feet away from me. Maybe we can both get a few hours of sleep before practice. I should say something to help bring up his sprits, something that'll make him feel appreciated. "And you're the best little brother I could ever ask for."_

"_You're just saying that cause I'm the only one you've got. And it's truuuueeee." _

"_No wonder Raph says you sound like a girl. Now move over!"-_

My **only** little brother.

_-"Don't worry, Don, I gottcha."_

_Oh no, I'm not worried. Who said I was worried? I'm just hanging upside down looking at a good eight story fall wrapped in a chain that is doing both an admirable job holding me up and cutting into my skin. I guess I should thank that mutated monster for throwing the chain at me. If it hadn't I would have just landed with a splat on the pavement below. I'll send it a card later. Did the chain just slip?! Shell! I can't even get my hands free._

"_It's okay, Don! Don't panic!"_

_Don't panic? What the shell is he on? Of course it's okay to panic like this! If I wasn't panicking I would be worried! I try and twist myself up better to get some slack in the chain so I can get my hands free. EEP! Okay. That was a bad idea. I just slid two feet closer to the ground. I lick my lips nervously. Help?_

"_Don!" I look over at Mikey who's… hanging in mid air? How did he get there? Wait the chain. I thought it was wrapped around a beam or something higher up on the building's half built infrastructure. How did he- oh right. I remember right before I went over the end of the platform seeing Mikey grabbing the other end of the chain. Obviously he didn't have time to brace himself so how are we both suspended in the air. I look back up the length of my body. Oh, some of the girders caught the long length of chain between us holding us apart. At least we weight about the same. This is one bizarre balancing act. "Just take it ease and stop moving around! It's going to be alright!"_

_How the shell does he think it's going to be alright?! In this position it would only take one wrong move and we both will be plummeting to our deaths. At least he has the freedom of being able to move his arms. He should be able to catch a hold of something and at least slow his descent. Who am I kidding? Mikey's a monkey when it comes to climbing and catching things in freefall. Of course he's going to be able to slow his descent. I, on the other hand, will only survive if the chain catches on something. That isn't a pleasant idea. The forces applied to the chain would tighten it enough that I doubt I would just have tons of minor cuts anymore. I could even have my arm ripped off._

"_Don. Don, listen to me," Sorry, Mikey, I'm currently panicking and can't pay attention to you trying to comfort me. "It's going to be alright. Trust me, bro!" What the shell is he up to now? The only time he tells me to trust him is when he's about to do something that he knows I'm not going to appro-_

"_MIKEY!!" He let go of the chain?? What the shell??_

_Oofff! Ow! What the shell? Mikey tackled me in mid air. That makes sense. What doesn't make sense is how we landed on a floor that's… moving? Yeah, it's slowly going up. An elevator? He tackled me into the construction site's main lift that someone is calling to one of the upper floors. I guess I should be thankful he tried to warn me. Of course, he could have told me what his plan was before doing it and freaking me out. He's rolling me off my side. Oh great, he's smiling at me. I just know that's not a good sign. He's going to star teasing me…right about… Now._

"_Dude, you scream like a girl."_

_He starts to unwind the chain around my legs. I hiss at the sting of the chains being pulled out of raw and cut skin. Shell, that hurts. "At least I don't make a habit of it like you."-_

He's a pain in the shell.

_- Why couldn't I live a nice and peaceful life? Did I do something in past life that pissed someone off enough that they decided to have me remade as a man sized turtle that was constantly fighting for his life. Better yet, a turtle who is always in life and death situations that are not always his own. Yeah that sounds about right. I only hope this isn't one of those times. I reach up and press the earpiece on the headset closer to my ear to hear a reply. "Mikey stay awake." _

"_I… a-awake…"_

_He maybe awake for now but it doesn't sound like he'll be awake for much longer. What the shell happened? He was going sewer boarding, it's not like he would run into any Foot Ninjas or Purple Dragons down here. Mikey doesn't go looking for a fight like some other turtles I know. If anything he tries to avoid fighting because he has much more important things to do like playing video games, reading comic books and skateboarding. Of course he will do everything he can to goad Raphael into a fight but that's just because he is a masochist sometimes. I glance at the tracker in my hand. He should be right around the next corner…_

…_Oh Shell…_

_I blink and quickly shake my head to bring myself out of my shocked still position. I can already tell its bad just by looking at how he's laying sprawled out on the sewer's floor. I pull my duffel off before I even reach him. "Mikey? Can you hear me?" I drop the duffel next to me as I kneel on the cold floor next to him. Step one: make sure he's okay to move and –if he is- get something between him and this floor. If not, cover him and keep him as warm as possible while I call for help. Please be alright Mikey. I really don't want to call for anything more then someone to help me carry you home. _

"_Donnie…" he breaths as he tries to move his head. My hand flies from where it had been taking his pulse to hold his head still. I don't know if he has any neck damage. Since his shell is intact I don't have to worry about spinal damage. There are some benefits to being a turtle. _

"_Just stay still for a second." Hmmm… his neck feels enacted. No swelling or odd bumps anywhere. He's obviously in pain though, where else could he be hurt? "Mikey, can you tell my where it hurts?"_

"…_arm…" _

_My focus goes to the arm laying limp next to him. It doesn't appear to be injured in anyway. I still take the time to run my hands gently over the skin. Again, nothing. This arm is fine. So it has to be his other arm that's bothering him. Hey where is his oth- oh shell! Shell! He… lost his arm? What the shell was he trying to do that made him loose his arm?! Wait, calm down. There's no blood except from the road rash on his hip. He would be laying in a pool of blood if he lost an arm. He must be laying on it. "Mikey?"_

"_Hmm…"_

"_Mikey? Can you hear me? Are you still awake?"_

"_I'm… awake… now…"_

"_Okay I'm going to roll you over onto your shell. It's going to hurt but if the pain is too much let me know and we'll stop." I wait for the weak response before shuffling on my knees closer to him and laying my hands on his hip and shoulder. Carefully and deliberately slow, I roll Mikey over, keeping an ear and eye out for any signal that he was in pain. He seems to make the change relatively easily. At least he was crying out and sobbing. He really has to be in pain to not be trying to make a scene about this. _

_Oh… Mikey…_

_His arm is definitely broken. He's lucky it didn't poke through the skin. Right in about the middle of his forearm I can see where one of the bones is bent, pushing up against the skin enough to make a large lump. At least this seems to be his worst injury. I reach into my duffle and after a few moments of digging pull out a long slender needle with a small bottle of morphine. Normally I don't start giving my brothers medications, especially morphine, in the field. It's better for them to be able to think clearly and be in pain rather then being hazy with drugs but I need to set this break and I don't have anyone with me to hold Mikey down. I can't set his arm and hold him still at the same time. At least we're in the sewers. Not many people come down here in the first place. _

"_Okay, Mikey," I say as I gently inject him in the uninjured arm. "I'm going to set your arm then we're going to get you home. You can walk right?"_

"_Yeah… think so…"_

"_Can you tell me what happened?"_

"_Wanted to… touch the train…"_

_He wanted to tag the train when it went by?! I glance for a moment at the tracks set up on a bridge nearby. No wonder his arm is so screwed up. He's lucky not to have lost it. If Splinter finds out how he got injured, he'll band Mikey from ever skateboarding again. Guess Mikey's going to owe me one. "Don't tell anyone that okay? It's our little secret. As soon as I get this arm set, I'm going to help you back to the lair and then we're going to get you fixed up properly."_

_He giggles, faint and slurry and nothing like his normal snicker. Morphine must already be taking effect. In a weak humorous voice he says, "Not going to carry me Don?"_

"_Mikey, we both know that you're heavy. I can't carry you all the way back to the lair." I forgot morphine makes him a little delusional. He has a bad habit of talking about the most random things when he's been given morphine. Well, more random then normal. At first I didn't think it was possible but it is. Least I'll know he's alright. The extra yapping will keep him awake so I can ask him how he's feeling later. _

"_Are you… calling me fat?"_

"_No!" where the shell did he get that idea? I turn back to my duffel bag, pulling out what I'm going to use to immobilize his arm. "I said you were heavy Mikey. If you were fat, I would have had you on a diet long ago."_

"_You told me to cut back on pizza…"_

"_I told everyone in the lair to cut back on pizza because of the money, Mikey, not because of your weight. We can't afford to be ordering pizza every other day especially when we can't decided on what kind of toppings we want." Yeah, pizza night is getting a little out of hand. Seven pizzas for five mutants is a little much. I didn't even know that Sensei liked pizza._

_He's giggling again, "Like I'm going to trust the guy who lit himself on fire."_

_What? When did I light myself on fire? Hmmm… oh… __**That**__. I gently maneuver his arm around so I can work with it better. "Mikey that happened ages ago. I really don't see the need to talk about it now."_

"_You're just embarrassed because you ended up in the shower with Raph."_

_Okay that does it. Morphine or not that was a low blow below the belt. "I was panicking Mikey. I don't usually set fire to what I'm wearing when working in the workshop." _

"_You just came running out of the room, bandana flapping about on fire, and made a beeline for the bathroom." Definitely a little delusional. It sounds like he's talking to someone other then me. I remember what happened very well. I don't need Mikey to retell it to me like it was the most interesting thing Funniest Home Videos last night. I might have been able to win some money, though. It was kind of funny but not funny enough to be in near hysterical giggles on the floor like he is right now. I guess that's the morphine talking. "Then you run into the bathroom and we can hear Raph freak out. And then your apologizing and Raph starts yelling… the water is shut off and Raph and you are still yelling… then Raph comes stalking out of the bathroom in a towel and holding you in a head lock… telling you to take off the bandana next time and- OW!"_

_Guess he felt me reset the bone despite the pain relievers in his system. _

"_That hurt…" he mumbles his eyes finally beginning to slip shut. I didn't want him to fall asleep but it will make moving him easier once I call Raph for backup. We won't have to listen to him whine all the way back to the lair or listen to him recount every embarrassing thing I've ever done since he can remember. There weren't that many but when I did have them they were bad. Some of them made the shower with Raph look like nothing. "I want to go home…"_

"_I know it hurts, Mikey." At least now his arm won't be going anywhere bound to his chest and stomach like that. I can't imagine hitting that off something would feel good. I pull a large blanket out of the bag and wrap it around him. I take a moment to arrange it so that his feet are resting on the duffel and then move to his head where I cradle his head on my thigh. There. He should be comfy for a while and we don't have to worry about getting attacked. I pull out my shell cell and punch the number for Raph's cell. I lay my hand gently on his forehead. "Don't worry, we'll be home soon and then you can watch me make a fool of myself. I promise."-_

Ow… Shell… Mikey?

My baby brother.

The proverbial light in the sewers.

The jokester who is always playing practical jokes.

A serious pain in the shell.

And, honestly, I wouldn't have him act in any other way.


	18. Chapter 18: A Complete Nutcase

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Yes, yes… I know… I know… I've been a terrible fanfiction author. I haven't posted anything in what… Two weeks? A little less then that? I don't know. I didn't really keep count. And I really don't have a single excuse for it either so… yeah… forgive me?_

Chapter Eighteen: A Complete Nutcase

I'm not sure which hurts more, my head or my shoulder. Laying on concrete hurts, especially if you barely have the energy to move enough to give your shoulder a break. I wish I could go to sleep but I don't think that that's a good idea. For one, it's really chilly in here and with my muscles barely being able to shiver there's no way to warm myself back up. Shock is a big possibility. I also don't know how seriously I was hurt in that crash landing. The less I move on my own the better, least I aggravate any injuries I don't know about. If I didn't have a shell I know I would be dead right now. The last and most important thing I do know is that I'm eventually going to have to go back to the lair no matter how much I don't want to.

How could they say those things? How could Mikey? They know I care about the family, about them. Half the stuff I build is for them. I'm also the family medic even though they know I dislike it. The only times I use what little 'doctor' experience I have is when someone in the family is hurt or sick. I hate it. I hate knowing that some twisted goon hurt one of them bad enough that I have to do my best to clean up the mess left behind. I don't like seeing them stretched thin and weak as newborn kittens as a virus ravages their bodies. I didn't ask to be the medic -everyone just assumed I would be- and even though I hate it, I'll still do it. For them.

Whoa, when did I close my eyes? Come on… Come on… there! Open at last. Now I've just got to keep them there. I can feel them drooping again. Shell… I'm going to have to get up just to stay awake. Well… here's hoping I didn't damage my neck or that I have some internal injury that'll have me bleed out from the inside in the next few minutes. I hiss as I slowly begin to roll over. Definitely aggravated my ribs again. If they were only bruised before they're cracked now. OW! Okay… that was dumb… don't put any pressure on wrist. There, stay tucked up against my stomach where you'll be slightly protected. Yes, finally, I made it to my knees. Hmm… dizzy…

I have got to stop falling over. It hurts. Hmm… there's a lot of pipes up there on the ceiling. That'll be a good place to hide till I feel better and figure out what to do next. I just have to figure out how to get up there as hurt as I am. I can't forget the skateboard either. Mikey'll kill me if I loose his favorite board. Besides, a skateboard laying in the middle of an abandon tunnel could cause a passer by to look for me, whether it's Foot Ninja or mutant turtle I really don't care. I just want to be left alone right now.

Okay, let's try to get back up and stay up. Maybe after I'm up for awhile I'll be able to climb up there. I really don't want to hide from them but I'm so mad at Mikey right now that I… I'm worried that'll I'll hit him or something. Crud that little shell head! Re-remembering that entire fight and what he said is like reopening an infected wound and pouring alcohol and salt into it then have Shredder kick it has hard as he can. No. It hurts more then that. No, don't cry. It's… it's okay… he didn't mean it… I know he didn't mean it… but… it still hurts. I wipe at my eyes. Those are not tears. They're water droplets from the pipes above me. Come on, get up and go from there.

"MBCPWLEEB!!" Crud, someone has already found me. I was hoping that it would take them longer to find me. It is a maze down here and I was going fast enough to cover a lot of distance before I crashed. Guess it wasn't enough judging by the pounding feet. Look, I don't know who you are but leave me alone. Maybe I can get up and run away. It is only one of them. Why do I want to get away from them so bad anyways? We've had arguments just as bad as that one -some even worst- so way is this one so different? I guess because I've never been… criticized like this before from all of them at the same time.

I was thinking to long, "Let me go!" I struggle against whoever as best as I can. Shell, it's hard to move. Judging by the shade of the green arms around me, Blue is the one who has my shell pressed against his plastron. "Mbc, nped mbtc. Hw'x dl. Xwba ghfiwhcj. Hw'x peyhjiw." Yup, definitely Blue shushing me now. He must think I'm not all together here. Well, okay, I'm not all here but I'm coherent which is what he's looking for. I don't want to go home. I'm just too tired to fight against him right now. Great, now he'll take me back to the lair.

What the shell is with me? They're my family. If they really didn't want me there then they wouldn't have come after me at all. They would have let me leave. They wouldn't have gotten into a fight with the Foot and chased me all over the city. That security alarm helps prove that they didn't want me to leave with out their knowledge. I should disregard everything that they said during that 'discussion' no matter how much it hurt. Okay deep breath and relax. See, Blue, you don' have to hold me so hard. I'm not struggling anymore.

He let's go slowly then moves so he's in front of me. Hey look, I'm sitting up and not falling over, that's a first. He's worried about me. When is he not worried? No, don't roll your eyes at him. He'll just freak out even more. He holds my head still for a moment, staring into my eyes before running his eyes over me. Looking for injuries I guess. Yup, considering how he's trying to get a better look at my arm. No, don't touch it! It hurts! Don't look at me like that. If you grab it like that again I'll slap you just as hard. Shell…

He goes to take me arm from me again but this time taking a hold of the elbow rather then the middle of my forearm. He's watching my other hand warily. Guess he's worried I'm going to slap him again. Barely touching my skin, he runs his finger tips over my arm from my elbow down to my wrist. He frowns when he sees me wince when his finger tips brush over my wrist. Reaching into a bag he had slung over his shoulder he pulls out a brace. Hey that's my duffle. I thought I lost it at the junkyard. Guess when I vanished they found it when they were looking for me. I should thank Splinter for repairing the strap next time I see him.

Blue splints and wraps my wrist tightly. Yes, it hurts you nitwit, but I know you have to wrap it. Please tell me you have some aspirin in that bag. Well, a blanket is a far cry from some pain relievers but I can live with pain better then I can cold. He drapes the thin blanket over my shoulders, pulling it around in front of me. Thank shell for emergency blankets. I'm already starting to warm up.

Looks like we're getting ready to leave. I was kind of hoping you would call Raph so I could get carried home. I want to just curl up and sleep for a couple hours not walk almost a mile through twisty and damp tunnels. Wait. I hold my hand up to stop him from hauling me up to my feet. We can't just leave Mikey's board down here. I point over to it and he looks at me like I'm crazy. He shakes his head with a small smile in his face and then walks over and picks up the skateboard. Using the Velcro handles of the bag he easily locks it down on top of the duffle.

Yeah, yeah I'll get up now. He wraps his arms around me and just hauls me to my feet. I have to take a slight step forward when I reach my feet. My sense of balanced is still a little whacked from my episode. Blue just tightens his arms around me, holding me steady. Walking back to the lair is going to suck. Please, Blue, call Raph. I really don't think I'm going to make it back to the lair on my own.

Sweet, he's pulling out his shell cell. After hitting a few buttons he places it against his ear and begins talking. Guess everyone was waiting to get a call from whoever found me. "H kbvcm ihd. Ypai, npc rbv dllw vx pw wil Wihywr Chcwi Xwyllw yvc bkk? Il'x p ehwwel vcxwlpmr bc ihx kllw pcm il'x hcgvylm ihx tyhxw pjphc… Cb, H wihcf il ebxw ihx opepcnl bc rbvy obpym, Dhfl. Mbc'w tbyyr, il'x jbhcj wb ol peyhjiw. Payhe, pyl rbv xvyl H npc'w jhul ihd pcr fhcm bk aphc ylehluly? Il xlldx wb ol hc p ebw bk aphc… Il xepaalm dl. Hw'x cbw kvccr jvrx! Xilee… bfpr. Ypai, xll rbv hc p klt. Dhflr, ilpm opnf wb wil ephy." He hangs up and tucks the phone back into his belt before tightening the strap on my duffle again so it rides up on the back of his shell. Great, now I have a long wal-

ULP!

Okay, I guess Blue can carry me too. I doubt he can carry me as long as Raph can. If you compare their muscle masses, Raph definitely is the stronger of the two. That was probably who he was talking to on the phone. Actually, he was probably talking to all of them. I bet he was telling them he found me, the state I was in, and to tell Raph to meet up with us so he doesn't end up tearing his muscles up carrying me all the way home. I let my head rest against his shoulder. Normally I would be complaining about being carried like this but I'm too tired to care. Yup, already yawning. Maybe I'll just close my eyes for a moment…

"Rly jbhcj wb ivyw rbvyxlek npyyrhcj ihd ehfl wipw." Hmm…? Raph? I blink my eyes open. We're at the Thirty Ninth Street run off. Must have been sleeping longer then I thought. Raph's walking over to us as I blink owlishly at the run off. Why do we always end up here at least once in a night?

I yawn as Blue says, "Hw tpx wil dbxw nbdkbywpoel tpr kby ihd."

Raph shakes his head and slips his arms under my knees and shoulders taking the weight out of Blue's arms. "Jhul ihd wb dl olkbyl rbv xwyphc xbdlwihcj." I snuggle down slightly so that I'm more comfortable. Okay, I'm ready to go home now. Get going Raph, there's a bed with my name on it there. I peek over his shoulder to see Blue following along behind Raph stretching out his arms. Probably should have put up a struggle when he first picked me up. I hope he didn't hurt himself. He's noticed me watching him. He gives me a reassuring smile as he lets his arms fall down to his side and takes several long strides to came up next to Raph and me. Why does he always insist on brushing his injuries off?

I doze on and off as they walk through the tunnels. I don't start making a conscious effort to stay awake until we get closer to the lair and even then it's a struggle. My body wants to rest and my mind is telling me to stay awake. It would be easier for Lady to take a look at me if I was awake. I doubt I have a concussion. Blue wouldn't have let me sleep if I did. I'm positive that's going to be the first thing she checks for too.

I watch through half lidded eyes as Blue pulls down the third pipe in a row of four, opening the hidden door that leads into the lair. It's good to be home again. I start to pull away from Raph as he reaches the bottom of the steps. Come on, hothead, you got to carry me all the way home now put me down. Don't give me that look. I'm perfectly fine, especially if you're going to let me sleep for the next seventy two hours. Thank you. He keeps a hand on my shell as if he's afraid that I'm going to fall over again. "Really, I'm fine Raph. Just a little tired," I mumble as I step away from him and turn to the kitchen. A glass of water and then Lady can poke and prod at me. I turn and find Mikey stand next to me looking ecstatic and then… confused?

"DHNILEPCJLEB!" Ow! My wrist! Why is Mikey… Oh… Shell…

I just punched him in the gut…

And I wasn't pulling my punches…

He's already doubled over, falling to his knees as he clutches at his stomach still looking completely stunned. Shell! What is wrong with me! I don't even get a chance to kneel down and check him. A pair of dark green arms wrap around me, pulling me backwards and pinning my arms to my sides. At least Raph is being careful with my injured wrist. Blue is crouching down next to Mikey who's put his forehead on the floor. I can hear other footsteps hurrying closer.

Splinter is going to be so mad at me. The only fighting he's sanctioned for us to do outside the dojo is wrestling matches over the remote and if we break something we get in trouble regardless of the reason. I… I don't want to be here but what if Mikey's really hurt? No, he's getting up slowly. Blue's helping him and now Blue's looking at me like he's going to gut me where I stand but… he pauses. His eyes are wide like he surprised about something. Why is he surprised? Did he think that Raph wasn't going to grab me? Shell, they're probably going to think I'm off my rocker again. Hey, what's… Oh shell… I'm crying again.

"Mbc, pyl rbv peyhjiw?" He's speaking tentatively to me but I completely blow him off. Mikey's looking up at me and he's… he's… saying he's upset is an understatement. He looks like he's been betrayed by his best friend. Well, yeah I am his best friend. He and Raph goof off together, he keeps Blue from getting an ulcer (thankfully), but he tells his fears and secrets to me. I'm his confidant, his safety net, the one who keeps him grounded to this reality, and I just turned his entire world upside down by hitting him in anger when I knew who he was. Okay so he has no idea that I know who he is but I know that I know who he is. Shell… stop looking at me like that… Mikey… I'm sorry… just… I didn't mean…

"LET ME GO!!" I have to get away from here. I feel like I kicked an abandon puppy in a back alley living in a cardboard box soaked through by the rain that's pouring down on its head. I feel lower then crud right now and I would give anything to get away from that look he's giving me. Even if I have to go through Raph, I'm getting out of here. Well, first I have to make Raph let me go then I'll go through him to get out of here.

Raph may be the strongest of us but I've always used my mind to get myself out of tough jams by using my opponent's strengths against them. I let me knees give out from under me, dropping my center of weight and making me more stable while pulling Raph over as he tries to catch me, thinking I'm collapsing. I hate using his concern against him but Raph would jump in front of a semi to protect any of us and – in this case- he would crack his skull off the floor instead of letting me hit. Now that he's off balance all I have to do is push my shell backwards, stand up and do a back flip. Raphael's going to realize what I'm doing and sacrifice his hold on me to jump over my head, twist in midair and land facing me on all fours. We've done it countless times in practice just incase someone ever pulled a stunt like this when we grabbed them or if we were ever grabbed from behind. The perfect way to get out of a bind and yet not give up any ground offensively.

Raph grunts but predictably does just what I thought he was going to do. Make sure not to put any weight on you're injured arm, Donnie. That would hurt. I have to take several steps back to maintain my balance and find almost find myself face to face with Raph. He does look too pleased with me right now. I should just let him catch me instead of running away again but I catch that look from Mikey out of the corner of my eye. I feel like a trapped animal. Technically I am an animal and I don't like feeling trapped so I'll stick to running away.

I turn and bolt for the staircase. I know that Raph is chasing me. I'll be lucky if they let me sleep without someone guarding the door from now on. Running is not the best idea in the world but as long as I don't have to look at Mikey I'll be fine. I think. I don't bother with the stairs. Raph is taller then me and even though I'm faster then him he can take three steps at a time while I can only take two. He'll catch me easily. Instead of the stairs I jump and run up the banister. Master Splinter is so going to kill me. I'm able to keep enough friction to run up the gentle slop while I hear Raph huffing behind me. Seems he took the stairs anyways.

I don't try going out the door, I'm in enough trouble from going outside on my own as it is. Taking the time to open the door would let Raph get a grip on me anyways and I know I'm not going to wiggle free next time. He'll be ready for any of my tricks. I really would like to go to my room and hide for the next fifty years or so but I doubt they'll let me hide in there that long.

I'm at the end of the banister. Instead of wasting the time to jump down from the railing I just leap across the hall and use the wall to jump down the hallway. Raph's on top of me already?! What the shell did he eat for breakfast? Sugar? Its okay, my room is right at the end of the hall. I can make it with time to spare. As long as Bl- shell! I thought only Raph and I did the jump flip over the railing. That was a stupid assumption to make. Blue may not like to jump off the first floor up onto the second but obviously he can do it. Not getting to my room now, not with Blue in front of me and a ticked off Raph behind me. Umm… Door! I duck inside the open door on the left. Sorry whoever but desperate times call for me to enter the room without your permission. Deal with it.

Blue's room? Why did it have to be Blue's room? At least I'm no longer feel like a trapped animal. Now I'm a cornered one instead. My heart's racing. Calm down… they're not going to hurt you. Scratch that, Raph looks mad enough to punch me. Oops, guess I was backing away from them. I take a second to glance back at the paper screen, nope didn't knock it over, thankfully. Blue would have had my shell if I'd damaged that. Okay, take a deep breath, they won't hurt you.

Blue holds his hand up to stop Raph from storming into the room. "Mbc'w elw ihd jlw apxw rbv," oh shell… he stopped Raph from hitting me so he could? I can't help but tighten my fists and bend slightly at the knees. Okay, stop, back up, whatever. The fight or flight reaction is getting to strong. I've already ran and now I'm getting ready to fight my brother? I'm going nuts. Look, there's nothing about his posture that even hints that he's going to hit me, attack me or anything. He's relaxed. Take a deep breath and unwind Don. That's it… loosen up… you're safe here.

"Mbc?" Sorry, Blue. I've probably made you think I'm going psycho or something and Mikey… shell, what a mess. Can my life be uncomplicated for once? Can I have one day where nothing bad happens, there's no melodrama anywhere, and I don't end up pissing someone off? There's a soft touch on my shoulder and I can't help but look up from the floor and into Blue's eyes. He looks just like he did on my first night here after I had finally came out of the bathroom. "Pyl rbv bfpr?" his hand slid up and rests on the back of my neck. A slight pull is all the incentive I need to step forward and wrap my arms around him. I press my face into his neck and take a deep, shuddering breath. Shell, I'm so tense right now.

"Ypai," Blue wraps his other arm around me as he speaks over his shoulder. "Pxf Xaehcwly wb dpfl xbdl bk wipw wlp wipw ipx p dvxnel ylepspcw hc hw. Il kllex ehfl p oyhnf." Mmm… I like neck massages. Don't stop Blue that feels insanely good. No, you don't have to tighten your grip. I'm not going to collapse on you. I'm just trying to relax. He pulls on me slightly and I let him draw me off to the side. Where are we… oh. He wants to get me sitting down because he thinks I'm going to collapse. He somehow gets us both on the bed with him sitting back against the wall me curled up partially in his lap and the rest of me sprawled out on the foot of the bed without letting go of me or stopping the neck massage. Brilliant.

"Ilyl'x wil wlp, Elb." Raph's back. "Xaehcwly xphm wilyl'x p dhcby xlmpwhul hc hw. Wilyl'x cbw lcbvji wb avw ihd pxella ovw lcbvji wb dpfl ihd whylm."

"H mbc'w ehfl wil hmlp bk myvjjhcj ihd pee wil whdl lulc hk ht'x bcer pc ilyope kbyd." I wonder what he's reaching for. Wish he hadn't stopped massaging my neck to get whatever it is. "Mbc," Shell, Blue cut it out. I don't care what you have. Leave me alone and keep up that neck massage. Huh? Tea?

"What is it with you and tea anyways?" I take the cup from him and stare at the cup. "If I so much as even taste chamomile in this, I'm going to dump it all over you." Hmm… well there's no chamomile in it but what is in it? I don' think I've ever had this tea before. It's sweet like it has a little bit too much honey in it but its kind of bitter like a green tea. It's weird, tasty, but weird.

"Hx Dhflr peyhjiw?" Blue asks in a low voice while I sip at the tea.

"Il xphm il xpt wil ihw nbdhcj pcm tpx poel wb mlkelne hw." Wonder what there talking about. Maybe they're talking about Mikey. I hope he's okay. I think he stepped backwards. It just happened so fast that I don't think I was pulling my punch. "Payhe wihcfx wipw Mbc'x ipuhcj apchn pwwpnfx. Xil wihcfx hw tbcem ol p jbbm hmlp wb flla wild paprw kby p ohw. Pkwly Mbc ipx npedlm mbtc sil tpcwx wb xll ibt il ylpnwx wb Dhflr."

Blue's hand is back to massaging my neck. It feels so good. Hmm… I'm almost out of tea. "Mblx xil ipul pcr hmlp bk tipw hx jbhcj nc thwi ihd rlw?"

Raph's shrugging. It's never a good thing for Raph to be shrugging. "Wil bcer wihcj xil'x abxhwhul pobvw hx wipw nbnfwphe bk myvjx hx oebnfhcj ihd kybd yldldolyhcj pcrwihcj. Wilxl ehwwel apchn pwwpnfx il ipx lulyr cbt pcm wilc pyl ahlnlx bk ihx dldbyr nbdhcj wiybvji wil myvjx ovw jlwwhcj 'ebxw hc wypcxepwhbc'." Heh, Raph making quotation marks with his fingers looks funny.

"Tipw povbw wil xlhqvylx? Sil ipx pcr hmlp pobvw wibxl?"

"Cbcl." I'm tired. I think the tea was drugged or something because I'm suddenly half collapsed against Blue. Raph takes the empty cup from me. Not that it was much of a challenge. I don't think I was really holding it as much as it was just balancing there. "H'ee wpfl wihx mbtcswphyx kby rbv. Wyr pcm jlw ihd wb jb wb xella."

"Ypai, nbvem rbv oyhcj va xbdl hnl pcm p olwwly xaehcw? H tpcw wb jlw wihx xvaabywlm olkbyl il kpeez pxella." Look, if you take the effort to drug me, shut up so I can go to sleep. Hey, who said you could stop the neck massage? Blue crawls out from behind me and rearranges me so that I'm laying on my stomach in his bed. This is comfy. He's even pulling the blanket out from under me to cover me with. Thanks Blue. "Wipcfx Ypai." Now why are you talking? Didn't I already tell you to shut up? Ice? That's cold. I guess that is the whole point of the ice.

I yawn into the pillow. Blue's going to wrap my arm again. Shell, I've got to stop doing this. At least I know that he's good at basic first aid. I wonder if I actually broke or fractured something this time. I don't even remember hitting my arm off anything in that crash flop. It might have just been whiplash or something that stressed it. I hope that's all it is. If I actually broke something it would be hard for me to break Saka's face when I see him next. I guess I could always kick him but that takes out all the fun.

Blue's so gentle I didn't even realize he was already splinting my arm. I don't even feel him touching me. Weird. There must've been some form of muscle relaxant or nerve inhibitor in that tea. The detached feeling I'm getting has to be from some kind of sedative. It's not powerful enough to knock me out but it's strong enough to make me a little loopy. Hmm… relax and be tired? I bet their trying to get me to sleep and really I won't deny that is an excellent idea right about now.

…

How long have I been asleep? I blink open my eyes and stare at the brick wall for a moment before yawing and rolling slowly onto my shell. I don't think it's been that long, a couple hours at most. Five tops. I don't feel like I've been asleep much longer then that. It's a little weird that they decided to leave me alone. I was positive I wasn't going to be able to take a step without one of them right on my heels.

Sounds like someone's down in the kitchen banging around making something. Yeah, I'm hungry too stomach. Maybe I can get whoever is cooking to give me enough counter space so I can make a sandwich or something. I throw the covers back and stand slowly, keeping a hand on the bed at all times. I'm not shaky on my feet anymore. That's definitely an improvement from before. I guess that these episodes are starting to become easier and easier with every new person I remember. If that's the case I only have Blue, Lady and Man to remember. Hopefully when I remember them it'll be less painful. My head is still aching from remembering Mikey.

I step out of Blue room and up to the railing. Hmm… everyone's here. Mikey is the one banging around in the kitchen. I still haven't figured out why I hit him. I was upset over what he said to me but he wasn't the only one to antagonize me so much. Blue and Raph got their two cents worth in too. Mikey just landed the coop de grace and he was the one I took my anger out on. I never should have hit him. He seems to be moving around alright so I guess he's not hurt to bad from my surprise attack. I should go down there and say I'm sorry but will he even listen to me? Yeha he will. He's Mikey and has a huge tolerance for forgiving everyone.

I hop over the railing without a second thought which was insanely stupid of me. I should have tried to figure out what the drugs in my system were going to do to my strength before jumping off the second level. The minute I tried to catch myself on the landing my legs just gave way and I landed in a heap staring blankly at the ceiling above me. Yeah, way to go Einstein. Mikey was standing back to me when I landed and is now looking around like he heard something. Yeah, you heard me land Mikey. Don't act so surprised.

"Ilr payhe, Mbc'x va!" He blinks down at me for a second. I have a sneaking suspicion he is getting ready to mock me. "By mbtc!" Mikey if you yell in my ear one more time you're going to regret it. He pulls me up to my feet effortlessly. If he can almost lift my dead weight up off the floor then he's bound to be alright. I don't think he winced anyways. I wasn't paying attention. "Rbv peyhjiw, Mbc? Hw ileax wb epcm bc rbvy kllw pcm cbw rbvy xilee, mvml."

Looking concerned (I really didn't have to act for that one) I point to his stomach and wait for him to reply. He blinks his eyes at me a couple times before realizing what I'm talking about and waving his hand off to the side like it was nothing. Physically, Mikey maybe fine but I'm wondering if there's any remorse in his mind. We all have physiological damage to some degree after everything we've gone through and the more we can avoid it the better. This little event may not seem like much but after several events similar to this it can add up, really fast.

I tap the side of my head only to get another confused gesture. Come on Mikey, I know you know what I'm talking about. Don't pretend to be so stupid, I know you better then that. I can almost see the light bulb come on behind his eyes. He acts like he serving something to someone -complete with and invisible tie and platter- and then points to himself. What?! No!! You haven't done anything to make you deserve a punch to your stomach.

I shake my head no and then grab both of his shoulders so I can glare into his eyes. Shell, I wish I could talk! "Never EVER let me hit you like that again Mikey. If I even so much as try to punch you then please, by all means, lay me out on the floor. You have my permission to do that and if Raph even so much as tries to smack you for that then I will take him into the dojo and show him a thing or two about fighting. Got me Mikey," I give his shoulders a slight shake. "Don't ever let me do that again." Of course I know he doesn't understand a word of what I just said to him but the fact that I said it makes me feel so much better. It's obvious that Mikey has already forgiven me for attacking him but now I can feel more at ease around him too.

He's giving me that lopsided grin of his and I can't help but smile back at him. "Come here," I pull him into a hug which he returns. Okay, so it's more like he's bear hugging me but I can deal. Surprisingly my ribs aren't screaming in pain. I wonder why that is, I thought I had hurt them again in the crash landing. Maybe I only re-hurt my wrist. That would be a lucky break. No pun intended.

"Hw'x p Fbmpf dbdlcw." Oops, looks like we've gathered quite an audience. Everyone's been watching us –well, me mostly- make up. Talk about embarrassing. I can just feel my cheeks flame up. Oh yeah, feel the burn.

"Ypai! Wipw'x dr ehcl!" Figures Mikey wouldn't be phased by this. He can do just about anything and not be embarrassed by it.

"Rlpi, tlee, rbv npc'w xpr hw xb H wbbf wil hchwhpwhul pcm xphm hw kby rp." Figures Raph has to get the last word in on any conversation he's in. Can't he just let a subject drop for once? Of course not. He wouldn't be the hotheaded maniac that can drive Blue up the wall if that was the case. I wonder why Lady's frowning and now she off like a shot, heading back to the piles of medical journals and texts covering the work table. I feel like I was just a lab specimen and didn't even know it.

Everyone's wandering off in their own separate directions now. Blue and Splinter are heading towards the table again, talking about something with Lady. Probably what just transpired in the kitchen between Mikey and me. Raph and Man are heading towards the television which is on mute and has what looks like a commercial for underarm deodorant. Umm… what should I do? Mikey's obviously working on making lunch, I wonder if I can convince him to let me help or if he'll kick me out of the kitchen like Splinter and Blue have been doing.

He doesn't seemed to thrilled when I offer my help but then smiles and pulls the carrots out of the fridge, giving seven to me before putting the rest away. I can peel carrots easy enough. I'm not the best in the kitchen but it's kind of hard to screw cutting veggies up. Unless, of course, you cut yourself with the knife or the peeler, then you've screwed up. Okay carrots are peeled and- slice them side ways? Can do. I don't know what song it is he keeps humming but he needs to stop, it's really annoying. Okay, chef, what's next? Celery cut the same way? On it.

I don't know how the long the two of us were there working quietly. Well, Mikey was humming the annoying song but other then that it was quiet from the two of use. The noise we were making getting together several snack trays didn't count to that tab. The silence between us is kind of oppressing. I wish I could talk to fill in the silence and that's weird coming from me. I'm the one who prefers silence almost as much as Master Splinter and Blue.

A tray of cheese and crackers in one hand and a big bowl of cheese doodles in the other, I follow Mikey over to the TV. "Xcpnfx pyl va jvrx! Xwba xwyphchcj rbvy oyphcx ebcj lcbvji wb jlw xbdl kbbm pcm tpwni albael ipul wilhy oyphcx xdpxilm hcwb wil hnl!" Can't he be quite for once? I set down my load of goodies next to his and then head back to the kitchen to grab the plate of hot dogs and another roll of paper towel. The last time we pigged out on hot and honey wings it took forever to get the stains out of our masks. Maybe this will help to prevent that.

I hand the hotdogs over the back of the couch to Lady who reaches for them and then toss the paper towel to Blue. Splinter's already claimed his recliner and Raph and Man are working on making more room on the coffee table for the hot dogs. Hockey? We're going to be watching a hockey game? Well I guess it isn't as bad as watching some of Splinter's soaps but still… I have no interest in a bunch of muscle bound, overly padded humans trying to beat each other half to death with their sticks, the ice, each other and the plexi-glass. Really there's no educational value to this program. Wait. We're missing something. What are we forgetting? Duh drinks!

A cheer explodes from the speakers in the surround sound system. Judging by the roar of approval coming from the audience and the fact that both Raph and Man are jumping from the couch their team just scored. Hey, wait a second. Wasn't Man just holding a big bowl of- OW! Shell! That was the top of my head! "Casey Jones you idiot! That hurt!" Wait a second…

_-"GOONGALA!!"_

_Out of the corner of my eye I catch sight of Casey swinging both baseball bats down, striking the Purple Dragon over the head with one and breaking his shoulder with the other. Please tell me he didn't kill that guy. I don't feel like cleaning up a crime scene tonight. I bring my bo around and catch the pipe that had been angled at my head. A quick kicked to the guys chest sends him flying away from me. "Casey! Take it easy! I'm not going to clean up one of your messes again!"_

_He turns to say something to me but I catch the surprise in his eyes. I turn before I even hear him tell me to watch out. Shell! I'm in mid turn, I don't have time to turn the rest of the way or block the attack in anyway. Well, there's one way to block the metal folding chair but it's going to hurt like shell. I duck my head down and lift up my shoulder as best as I can. My shell should take the force of the blow. OW! I can feel the metal bend and warp around my shell. Ooofff! I'm on the ground and my shoulder is burning. Shell, don't tell me that guy broke my shoulder._

"_DONNIE!!" Sounds like Raph saw what happened. Is he going to make it over here before that bonehead decides to hit me with the chair again? Doubtful. Looks like the chair nearly snapped when it hit my shoulder. Unfortunately, the remains of the chair have more then enough sharp pointy bits to stab me with. Okay, I can take a hit or two. The pointy metal bits aren't long enough to stab that deep. It's still going to hurt. Just stay on my stomach and let my shell take the hit and pray he doesn't smack me in the head with that thing. _

"_HHEEEYYYYAAAA!" Incoming hockey stick. Casey should go pro one day. Probably when he's done beating up punks on New York's streets. I'll suggest that to him the next time he's watching a game. It'll be an excellent career choice for him. The hockey stick has gone right across Mr. Purple Mullet's chest and Casey's using that to spin the creep around and send him pitching into group of his friends. Who said that hockey stick isn't a good weapon. Anything in the right person's hands can be a weapon. Just look at Mikey with a cast iron frying pan…_

"_Don! You okay, buddy?" Yeah, just have a possible broken shoulder and an even worst headache then before, thank you. _

"_Five minutes for high sticking," I mumble as I start to push myself up with my good arm. A hand suddenly latches onto the lip of my shell behind my neck and hauls me to my feet. Whoa, the world is spinning…_

_He holds onto my shell for a moment longer to make sure I can keep my feet before letting go. "How about you sit that penalty out for me and Raph and I'll clean up the rest of this mess." There's the barest of noises behind me. Raph steps up next to me, his eyes traveling over my shoulder as I hold it close before growling something indistinct and glaring at the rest of the gang gathered in this warehouse. I bet it had something to do with either telling me to take it easy or swearing revenge on those remaining._

"_Only if you clock one for me, Case."-_

Casey?

_-"Would you stop moving?"_

"_Stop trying to stab me and I'll stop moving."_

_I sigh. This is getting so tiring. "Casey if you don't stop moving around I'm going to call Raph in here to hold you down. It's your choice."_

_Okay, Casey's puppy eyes are almost as effective as Mikey's but the split lip and black eye are ruining the effect. "Don't give me that face Casey. If you and Raph would stop trying to take on every thug on the East side then I wouldn't have to patch you back up." This is getting so annoying. "Now hold still and let me give you a tetanus shot!" I reach for his arm again but before I can even bring the needle around he's already jerked it away. That's it. "Casey Jones stay still!"_

_He's still wiggling away from me?! That's it, I've lost my patience. Screw him. "Casey if you're not going to do what I tell you then go to the hospital and let a real doctor look at you. At least he's getting paid for this." Good, at least he's paying attention to me now. "Come here." He does so but hesitantly. "Now give me your arm." He's trembling, who knew that a big 'tough' guy like Casey would be scared of needles. It's ridiculous. _

_At least he's letting me swab his bicep with rubbing alcohol this time. He's still trembling like a leaf. Take his mind off the needle and this whole process will be a lot easier on him. Hmm… we really don't have that much in common. Here's a good one, it'll make him use those non bruised brain cell of his to think of something other then the needle in my hand. "I've never said thank you, have I?"_

"_Huh?" So eloquently put, Casey. I look away from the needle in my hand to focus on him._

"_For keeping an eye on Raph when he decides to go for a romp."_

_Casey gives a slight shrug of his shoulders, "No big deal, man. He always knows how to have a good time."_

_There's nothing funny about this, Casey. "Don't joke, Casey. I'm being serious. If it wasn't for you I don't think Raph would ever walk away from half the stuff he does. You're always there covering his shell so… thanks for taking care of him."_

_He looks away from me sighing for a moment before looking back at me. "If we're going to be doing the sappy 'thanks for everything you've done for me' thing then I should be thanking you too." I feel one of my eye ridges raise but I don't get a chance to say anything before Casey continues. "Don, thanks for keeping my best bud sane."_

_Sane? He thinks of Raph as sane? "Casey I don't know what-"_

"_Do you want to know of how many times he's come to me and tells me to remind him to do something special for you? Do you know how many times he's said 'if it wasn't for Don' or 'thank shell Don was there'? Man, you're his life line. You're the guy he goes to rant and rave for hours on end when he can't release enough steam on punks or punching bags. You're always willing to listen to him unlike the others and you can talk him out of doing some of the stupidest stuff ever. So right back at you with the thanks."_

_Well, I really wasn't expecting something like this to happen. It's nice to know that Raph does appreciate the hours I've spent listening to him carry on about all the injustices in this world. "Don't mention it, Case."_

_He gives me one of his cocky smirks but almost instantly becomes serious again. What the shell? More feely-feely time Casey? I wonder if I should have back off a little on the pain relievers. I think he's going loopy. "Hey, can you promise me something?"_

_I straighten up and stand next to the bed looking down at him. "Sure. What's up?"_

"_If something ever happens to me -like something bad- can you keep an eye on him when he decides to bust heads in?"_

_I can help but give him a sad smile. One day, I know I'm not going to be patching up one of them and I hope to shell that's never going to happen. "Only if you promise to listen to him if something ever happens to me."_

"_Count on it." We're even shaking hands on this? Yeah, Casey is serious. "So are you going to give me a shot or leave me hanging all night?"_

_The smile on my face is far from sad. I hold up the empty needle and shake it at Casey to prove it is empty. "I gave it to you a while back."_

"_Stupid ninjas."-_

A freak that parades around in a hockey mask and fights with a hockey stick.

-_"CASEY!!" I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die!_

"_Relax man! We're going to be fine! And stop yelling in my ear!"_

_Right stop yelling in ear, it's not like I'm going to die by being splattered all over the pavement or anything. It's not like we're going close to a hundred and ten on motorcycle being chased by a bunch of Purple Dragons who want to kill us all the while weaving back and forth through alleys. Oh and Casey Jones is driving the motorcycle. No, I'm not in any danger of dying. No danger at all. And Mikey's the King of England._

_Oh Shell… is that a semi? Backing up? Why not? This night can't get any worst. The semi's trailer is blocking the mouth of the alley. Sweet, we're trapped and going to have our already half beaten butts handed to us. Joy. Casey should at least be slowing down… anytime now… IS HE ACCELERATING?! "CASEY! STOP!"_

"_TAKE YOUR BO OUT AND HOLD IT ALONGSIDE US!" What the shell does he want me to do that for?! He's a suicidal maniac! If I ever see Raph again I'm going to punch him for telling Casey and I to take off on Casey's Harley. "I SAW THIS IN A MOVIE ONCE! TRUST ME!" A movie? Like that's suppose to make me feel any better. I don't like the idea of only one arm around him but I need to get my bo. Casey maybe an idiot and a maniac sometimes but I can't deny that ninety percent of the time he does something insane it's for a good reason. Usually. Okay bo's alongside us. "HOLD ON TIGHT!"_

_The squeak I let out would have embarrassed me at any other point but it was completely covered up by the sound the tires and brakes were making. The bike spins and almost falls onto its side but somehow it doesn't. It might have something to do with the overly wide tires. The bike smoothly slides under the trailer and with a grunt Casey is able to right it again and somehow we keep going. I let my forehead fall onto his shoulder. I think I left my stomach back there and my heart is up in my throat. _

"_See!" he hollers over his shoulder against the wind. "Told ya to trust me!"-_

The human that makes some of Raph's stunts look like playground games.

-_"OW!" Shell, why do I put up with this?_

"_DONNIE! I didn't think you would be over so soon." _

_A hand grabbing my bicep is the only warning I get before I'm forced to my feet. He could be a little more gentle helping me up or it was just his intention to rip my arm out of my socket. Great now both my forehead ad shoulder hurts. "You said you microwave was broken and you hadn't had anything to eat yet." I dig around in my duffle before pulling out the still hot macaroni and cheese. "Here, Mikey told me to give this to you after making some remark about not being able to cook without a microwave. Eat it before it gets to cold." He looks stressed, that would explain why he's smacking a hockey puck around his living room. "So why are you trying to kill me with a puck anyways?"_

"_Like I said I didn't think you were going to show up so soon." He's tilting the Tupperware container back and forth like he's not sure what to do with it. What's wrong with him? As soon as I'm done with the microwave and on my way home I'll call Raph and tell him to come and check on him. Their twin like relationship with each other should help him to weasel out what is wrong with Casey. "Now let me take a look at the microwave…"_

_I turn to head towards his pour excuse for a kitchen only to feel his hand grab my shoulder spin me back toward him. "Don, nothings wrong with my microwave. I… I just wanted to talk to you in private and that's the best excuse I could come up with."_

_Ooo-kay, this is weird. Casey and I rarely spend any quality time together. The only time we really spend anytime together is when we're working on motorcycles or 'bashing heads'. What can he possibly want to talk to me about in private? "Umm… okay I guess."_

_He's running his hand through his bangs, that's not a good sign. "Look, Don I… I… well, you know everything and I was just wondering if… could you explain to me how to… umm… you know… how to tell a girl you love her?"_

_What? Casey's asking me for love advice? What the shell is he thinking? "Casey why on earth do you think I can explain something like that to you?"_

"_Well, you do know everything…"_

"_I don't know everything Casey, get that idea out of your head. And I have no idea about the social interactions between humans when they love each other. If any of us have a general idea of what those are its Maser Splinter but I doubt that was the original intent of soap operas."_

"_Come on, bro. Don't leave me hanging."_

"_I'm sorry Casey but I honestly have no idea of how to say something like that to a girl." The odds that any of us to find a girl to even think of saying that too aren't very favorable. That girl would be one in a million. _

"_Well, if you did find yourself wanting to say that about a girl what would you say?"_

_I can't help but sigh and palm my face. Casey can be so stubborn sometimes that it makes Raph look like he gives in to easily. "I would just be myself. End of discussion."_

"_Don, this is me we're talking about here."_

_Yeah, I know. Don't remind me. "Exactly, act like yourself. That's about the best advice I can give you. If the girl loves you it's for who you are not who you pretend to be. Trust me Casey, be yourself. Who is this luck lady and why did you want to talk to me about this anyways?"-_

A friend.

A surrogate brother.

The vigilante.

And a complete nutcase.

"MBC!" Oh shell, not again. Two in one day barely eight hours apart? I've barely recovered from remembering Mikey and now I've remembered Casey? No wonder my head feels like it's splitting in half. It probably is. I don't imagine putting this much strain on it is a good thing. Whoa, the floor's moving or I'm swaying… I start to fall over only to have a pair of arms catch me and slowly lower me to the ground as darkness starts to swirl over everything. I'm not even going to bother trying to stay awake this time. I wonder if… I'll wake… on the… couch… again…


	19. Chapter 19: Big Brother and Sister

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Okay, everyone has been wondering why I've had Don remember the characters in the order that they are in and no it doesn't have a thing to do with Don's relationship with his family. All of Don's 'relapses' have and will be based on something that has reminded him of a particular family member (Raphael – Blood; Splinter – Training; Michelangelo – Skateboarding; Casey – Casey's natural clumsiness and not thinking). His memories are coming in no particular order, they're just happening at random. Really it's totally random. To decide the order of who was remembered when I put everyone's names in a hat and plucked them out._

Chapter Nineteen: Big Brother and Sister

Hmmm…

Ow…

Shell…

My aching head…

Since when has a mariachi band started rehearsing in my head? Well, that's a dumb question. They've been there ever since I woke up in that metal room. How long ago was that anyways? A couple days? It seems like years ago.

Hey, wait a second. Where am I? This is defiantly not the couch. There's nothing pressing against my arm, shell, or side. It feels like I'm on a bed. At least it's a lot more comfortable then the lumpy sofa. Mmm… and there's a nice warm blanket laying over me. I could get use to this pampering. Hey… what's hissing? It's very faint and really annoying. It's like that house fly that seems to reincarnate itself no matter how many times I kill it. I should tell Mikey that it's actually a ghost fly, he'll stay away from the lab for days to avoid the 'ghost' and I might actually get some work done for once that does not include staying up till after two.

I should move, get up, or just generally do something. Someone has to be close –I doubt they would willingly leave me alone after one of my episodes- I need to show them that I'm awake and get them to calm down. If this time has been anything like my past relapses then I doubt that my family didn't do anything but panic. I really don't remember what happened after I remembered Casey. I remember someone saying something and a pair of arms catching me as I fell but that's about it. Panic likely ensued like it always does and they brought me to wherever here is. Am I in my room? No, doesn't feel like it. I feel uneasy about wherever I am, like I normally dislike being here. What the shell is on my face? It's a little too tight and why is there a breeze only around my mout-

Oh… Shell…

I'm on oxygen…

What the shell happened?! Why did they put me on oxygen?! At least I now know I'm in the sick bay in my workshop. That's the only place I have several oxygen tanks for just this sort of thing. Raph has to be nearby, I told him not to take the tanks out of this room and not to leave whoever was on oxygen alone. The time Mikey accident knocked a tank over and it went through the wall and took out the Pacman arcade game in the living room was reason enough to make him agree with me.

Okay calm down, there's no sense in panicking because I was put on oxygen. My breathing must've become depressed. It would make sense, after having an 'overload' after every memory it would eventually have to affect some of my most basic brain functions. If I have another memory will my heart be affected? Now there's a scary thought. Okay, it's settled. No more actively trying to remember anyone today. Lady and Blue can wait till tomorrow to be remembered.

Hmm? I feel a hand rest gently against the side of my throat. Someone is taking my pulse and judging by that long winded sigh the hand belongs to Raph. "Xwhee cb nipcjl. Tir tbc'w il gvxw tpfl va?" He takes his hand away again and I can hear the scraping of the chair as he half flops into it.

"Dprbl hk rbv swbaalm nilnfecj lulyr wtb dhcvwlx hw tbvem dpfl wil whdl jb or kpxwly." Go Casey. Get Raph to calm down. If he wasn't in here watching me I bet he would be in the dojo beating on his poor defenseless punching bag. Come on, eyes, open already!

"Ohwl dr silee." Come on… Come on… What are they glued shut or something? Come on… yes! They're open! Now if only I could focus on something... "H gvxw tpcw ihd wb tpfl va."

"Wilc wpfl p zvhnf ebbf olkbyl il nebxlx wild pjphc." I think the chair just fell over or something cause that was really noisy. Oh look, an up close and personal look at Raph's face. Just what everyone needs to see first thing in the morning. At least he's not grumpy.

"Hi Raphie," Wow, that took a lot of energy. I was barely mumbling too. I think I might just close my eyes now and go back to sleep…

"Jb jypo Payhe, Npsl. Il'x xwpywhcj wb kpee opnf pxella." Ow, Raph. Stop patting my cheek. I want to go back to sleep. "Nbdl bc, Mbcchl. Gvxw xwpr ptpfl kby p klt dhcvwlx. Wipw'x hw." Okay, okay. I get the point. You want me to stay awake. I hope you know it's not going to be for much longer, right?

Hey look, it's Lady. What a surprise. Shell, her hands are cold. "Tipw ipul rbv nilnflm?" Umm… you do know that Raph's already checked my pulse right?

"Ihx avexl," he's handing a stethoscope to her. "Wb ovxr wyrhcj wb flla ihd ptpfl pkwly wipw mb nilnf pcrwihcj lexl."

She hums an affirmative as she places the ear pieces in her ears and then holds the diaphragm in her hand. Thank shell, those thing can get so cold. Hey everyone is in here too. I didn't know this many people could fit into the med bay at once. Okay so Mikey's half on top of Blue and Casey but he's still in the room so it counts. Sort of. Man, I'm tired. Of course, all I get for trying to close my eyes is a gentle slap to the cheek from Raph. It's not enough to hurt but I still give him a glare that makes him raise and eye ridge at me. Don't you dare piss me off right now, Raph. I'm too tired to deal with your shell right now.

Ahh! I can't help but jerk slightly which made my already sore muscles anything but happy with me. "That's still cold," I mumble as I turn my head away from Lady. She rests the stethoscope back against my plastron after having jerked it away from me when I jumped. She probably thought I was going to take her hand off or something. As if. I don't think I could hurt her even if I was turned into a savage monster and tore apart her apartment.

I wince as pain rolls through my mind. I shouldn't have thought that. If my episode today… or is it tonight? Anyways, if my episode was any indication then remembering something else today could be seriously detrimental to my health. I don't remember ever being hurt to the point where my family had me put on oxygen. I'll have to get after Raph thought… he put the mask on just a little too tight to be considered comfortable.

Lady's now taking my blood pressure. If they were fearful enough to put me on oxygen then I can understand why she wants to check everything but I feel fine. I'm just a little tired… okay, very tired. As in exhausted. Whatever. I should show them I'm alright and do something about this mask. It feels like I'm being forced to breath. What the shell is the PSI reading on the air flow. I reach up and try to pull the mask off my face.

"Elpcl hw bc wilyl, Mbcchl," shell Raph. I want to take it off. Oh right, like it was really challenging for you to pin down my arm. You are such the macho turtle right now. Seriously, get off! Raph! Shell, why can't I have some more strength so I can punch him one in the nose like he deserves!

"Npc rbv xhw ihd va kby p klt dbdlcws? H cllm wb xll tipw wil mhkklylcnl hc ihx oebbm pylxxvyl hx." Raph stops pinning my arms down and slowly sits me up. I wobble slightly as he supports me and Lady starts to pump up the arm band again. It would be easier to think straight if I didn't have my brain feel like it's being slowly squeezed out of the top of my head. At least with Raph holding me he can't stop me from taking off the mask. I reach for it again but this time I'm so ready for him to try and bat my hand away. A quick jerk to the left and I'm out of his grip… and insanely dizzy. Oof! Ow… least I landed on something soft. Actually I was caught and… oh… s-shell

I'm…

I'm… not where… I think I am…

Am I?

Shell, I am!

I did a face plant into Lady's chest!

I let out what has to be the most embarrassing squeak on the face of the planet and jump a good three feet off the bed. Good thing Raph on the other side of the bed, I would've jumped right off the bed with the distance I had. Stupid mask. How am I supposes to hide my face in Raph's shoulder if this mask keeps getting in my way?

I'm so blushing right now.

Oh no… here it comes. Great now every one is snickering at me. Wait for it… wait for it… there. If I wasn't blushing before I'm blushing now. By the sounds of it Mikey just fell off his precarious perch laughing hysterically at me. Even Raph's shoulders are trembling as he tries to contain his laughter. Gee… thanks Raph. "Tlee, hw'x chnl wb fcbt il'x xwhee gvxw px xir px vxvpe," yeah, yeah Lady. Yuck it up why don't you.

"Pnwvpeer… il'x ollc pnwhcj dbyl pcm dbyl ehfl Mbcchl thwi lpni apxxhcj mpr." Yeah, lay me back down on the bed Raph. I don't care what Blue is saying I just want to go to sleep. Utter embarrassment and humiliation really tire a turtle out. Shell, this mask is so tight I can barely yawn right.

"Tipw mb rp dlpc, Elb? Il'x xwhee pnwhcj ehfl p nbdaelwl ebbc." I don't know what you said Casey but Raph didn't like it any judging by the way he just growled at you.

"Tpwni ibt il dbulx pcm hcwlypnwx thwi vx pcm nlywphc boglnwx. Il'x pnwhcj ehfl ihdxlek pjphv. Tilc il'x tpwnihcj Dhflr shjc wb ihd il mblxc'w ebbf nbckvxlm by ebxw pcrdbyl. Il ebbfx ehfl il'x pcperqhcj wil ayboeld ehfl il vxvpeer mblx. Mvyhcj ihx ehwwel xapyyhcj dpwni thwi Ypai, ihx dbuldlcw tlyl dbyl mlkhclm pcm nbcwybeelm vcehfl olkbyl tilc il khyxw tbfl va pcm pwwpnflm vz. Tpwni ihd pcm rbv'ee xll il's pnwhcj gvxw ehfl Mbcchl tbvem jhulc wil aylxlcw xhwvpwhbc il hx hc." Okay the way Blue is staring at me right now is really creepy. I feel like he's looking right into my mind and knows what I'm thinking. Psychic Blue… now there's a scary thought.

"Lsnleelcw boxlyupwhbc, Elbcpymb. H wbb ipvl cbwhnlw Mbcpwleeb pnwhcj wyvly wb ihdxlek wilxl apxw klt mprx." Hey, what a surprise. Splinter's praising Blue. Gee… that's never happen before.

"Hw tbvem dpfl xlcxl wipw il'x jphchcj dbyl bk ihx dldbyr px whdl jblx bc. Ihx obmr hx xebter kbynhcj wil myvjx bvw bk ihx xrxwld. Wilxl xlhzvylx mpr ol dbyl kybd ihx thwimypt kybd wil myvjx il tpx nc ypwily wilc tipw'x ipaalchcj pybvcm ihd." That's it Lady. Keep Raph's attention long enough so I can get this mask off.

Darn it! I was so close too… "Mbc'w lulc wihck pobvw hw, Mbcchl." Oh screw you Raph and the horse you rode in on. I want this off.

"Npc'w ybv gvxw wpfl hw bkk ihd, Ypai? Il mblxc'w xlld wb ehfl tlpyhcj hw." Yes, Mikey to the rescue! Convince him to get this thing off me. At least that's what I hope you're doing.

There goes that hope out the window. Raph's shaking his head no. "Xbyyr Dhflr, ovw Mbc xphm wb flla xbdlbcl tib tlcw wiybvji ylxahypwbyr pyylxw bc bsrjlc vcwhe wilr tlyl oylpwihcj cbydpeer kby pw elpxw p nbvael ibvyx pcm lulc wilc bcer pfwly p nbdaelwl xnyllchcj." Crud…

I try to yawn again. I'm tired. Raph's holding the hand I keep trying to keep the mask off with and it's a comforting weight. I wonder if they're going to let me go to sleep again. Raph's thumb keeps rubbing at the back of my hand. Keep that up and your going to put me to sleep, Raph. Would you guys go discuss me elsewhere? I know you're all talking about me but wouldn't you rather I get some rest so I can get better? Just let me sleep…

Their voices have settled into a dull drone in the background. I can't make out what they're saying anymore. All I know is that their talking is impeding my ability to catch some serious z's. Hey, why'd you stop rubbing my hand Raph? That was putting me to sleep faster. "Mbc," Hmm? Blue? His hand is resting on the center of my chest and he's whispering in my ear. I can make out every word he says in that freaky excuse of a language my mind's come up with. "Mbc tilyl pyl rbv? H fcbt rbv'yl hc wilyl Mbc. Nbdl opnf wb vx."

I force my eyes open and twist my head enough so that I can look him dead in the face as he pulls his head back and looks at me. His eyes are full of love and devotion. There is also a tint of sadness in them. I know Blue. I wish I could remember you too. I'm sick and tired of not knowing who you are big brother. Wait… big brother? Yes, Blue is my big brother. I know he is. Ow. The dull ache in my mind spikes momentarily. Okay, I'll remember you later Blue. I promise. You're next, bro. I smile up at him before I let my eyes fall close seeing that gentle smile of his.

…

Hmm…

Ugh…

Why does sleep always have to be interrupted by waking up? I think it's a conspiracy. I let me eyes flutter open sleepily. I'm still in the med bay stretched out on the bed on my stomach. At least they took that oxygen mask off. I wonder what time it is. I yawn and roll myself over more so I'm on my side. "Hey, Raph," I mumble more asleep then awake. He's sitting next to me in a chair watching me wake up with an amused look n his face. Jerk. Leave me alone, I tired.

I also gotta pee.

Really bad.

I yawn and sit up. Oh no Raph. You are not stopping me from going to the bathroom. He keeps a grip on my shoulders despite my less then impressed look. I try to get again only for him to hold me still. "Raph let me get up." He's holding up his hand for me to stay put. Alright but I'm only staying put for so long. Oh shell, he's reaching for the stethoscope. While it is nice that he's following my instruction on medical care now isn't the time for that. I really gotta go!

I gently take hold of his arm and squeeze gently making him pause and look at me. "Raph I'm alright. I know you're just doing what I told you to do but I'm fine just a little tired." I smile at him and –on impulse- wink at him. Raph looks surprised for some reason. "Take it easy, I'm not going to drop dead anytime soon but I am going to explode if you make me stay here much longer."

Using his surprise to my advantage I calmly slip off the bed and head out the door. "Mbc!" Oop, time to go. I hurry out into the main room and give a wave to Lady who's still standing over those books. I wonder when the last time she took a break was. Heh, she just did a double take. Guess she didn't think I would be up and moving so soon. Well I have only been down and out for what… Six hours? Yeah the hockey game was on around three in the afternoon. It's just after nine so yeah about six hours.

"Mbc?!" I easily catch the Frisbee that had been flying at my head and send it back to Mikey. It's good to see that even though I've been 'sick' things haven't changed at all. Mikey still has a bad habit of sending Frisbee's flying at people. Ah, bathroom. I calmly close the door behind me and head for the toilet. Ahh… sweet relief…

"Yb, Mbc? Pyl rbv bfpr?" Ahh! Casey! I'm trying to pee here! I grab the first thing my hand lands on and throw it at him. Direct score with a bar of soap to the forehead. Casey let's out what I can only assume is a curse and backs out of the room closing the door with a resounding slam. That's for hockey puck you idiot. I never did get you back for that one. "Rlpi, H'd bfpr Elb. Mbc'w jb hc wilyl Ypai. Il'x fhcm bk dbbmr tilc il'x vxhcj wil kpnhlhwhlx." Shell for brains.

I don't bother flushing the toilet right away. I know Raph's standing on the other side of that door waiting to hear something that so he knows I'm done enough to explode through that door and yell at me not to walk away from him when he's trying to follow my instructions on taking care of someone. I splash some cold water on my face. Shell, I'm still tired. At least I know I'm going to sleep well tonight. Okay, time to face Raphael's Wrath. I dry my face and flush the toilet reaching for the door at the same time its thrown open to reveal a very pissed off older brother. "Ummm… Hi Raph… I'm feeling fine by the way."

Yep, knew this was going to happen. He growls at me and grabs my wrist. "Ow, loosen up a little Raph. I'm perfectly fine." Raph pulls me across to the couch and makes me sit on it before reaching for the blood pressure cuff and stethoscope on the coffee table. I can't help but raise and eye ridge at him. "Raph you do know that if I haven't fainted yet then I'm most likely have no chance of being in any danger right?" Of course he ignores me and I'm forced to sit there while he goes over every inch of me checking me out.

After he's done, I leave a very agitated Raph squawking at Lady while I head for the kitchen and a soda. I wonder if both Mikey and Raph have a genetic relation with birds? Hmm… I wonder if they've had dinner yet? Where's the leftovers? I set a soda on the counter and begin digging around looking for something reasonable quick and with very little prep time. Preferably something I can put in the microwave and zap for a few minutes.

Someone taps my shoulder and I find Blue standing behind me smiling. "Hey, what's up?" He points to the clock and holds up his hand as if telling to wait. Why does he want me to wait? I'm hungry. He points back to the clock and barely spins his finger round half of it. Wait for a bit. I guess I can, Blue, but there better be a good reason for this hold up. I feel like I could eat the kitchen sink right about now.

Now what? Blue's shooed me out of the kitchen so I probably should fine something to take my mind off my stomach. I know they won't let me mess around in my workshop. Reading is out of the question. Raph's a little mad at me right now for up and leaving before he could check on me so there's no way in shell I'm going to try and spar with him. He'll wipe the floor with me. I could watch TV but the fact I don't understand what anyone is saying doesn't help capture my interest. Besides it's after nine, the only shows that are going to be on are comedies and suspense thrillers. Those don't make any sense without hearing what the people on the show are saying. And I'm **not** watching Bugs and Daffy with Mikey again. I'm surprised that my head didn't explode from the absurdity of what was happening on the show last time. I sigh, for lack of a better option, I'll flip through the stations.

Hmm… Mikey, Casey and Blue are leaving? I wonder where they're going. I set my soda down on the coffee table and step around the couch. Yep, they're definitely heading out. This is the first time today I've seen Blue with his swords on. Actually, I think he had them on when he found me in the tunnels but I don't remember that very well. I'm going to get some answers from Mikey. They shouldn't be heading out right now. What if the Foot grabs them and does the same thing to them as they did me?

A strong hand suddenly clutches around my wrist and stops me from heading up the staircase. "Raph, stop them. They're going to get hurt." Of course, he doesn't have a clue as to what I just said. I try and pull my wrist free only to have him tighten his grip. Obviously, it's Raph's job to keep me in the lair while the others leave. Don't they realize how dangerous that is? "Dhflr wlee ihd hw'x jbhcj wb bl peyhjiw pcm wb xwpr ilyl." I look up the stairs as Blue says something. Mikey gives me one of his trademark smiles with and okay hand sign. Then he points to me and holds up his hand telling me to stay here.

I can't help but look at Blue to make sure Mikey is telling the truth. He gives me that soft smile of his and gives me an okay sign as well. I don't like this. I don't even know what the Foot did to me and neither does Lady considering how long she's been hitting the books. What am I suppose to do if they get caught and have the same problem as me? There's no way I'm in any shape to try and figure out what's wrong on with them and me. I look directly at Blue, he'll protect Mikey and Casey. I know he will. I whisper under my breath, "Be careful." I watch as Blue cocks his head off to the side slightly as he studies me. Come on, Blue, your good at reading body language. Be careful out there.

Raph pulls on my arm gently and I step back with him as he leads me back towards the couch. I keep eye contact with Blue for as long as I can till I have to turn around or end up on my shell. I hope he got the message. I glance over my shoulder when I hear the front door open. Mikey and Casey are already outside and as I watch Blue turns his head back towards me. There's a small frown on his face but I can see the determination in his stance as clear as day. He got my message. He'll protect Mikey and Casey just like he always does.

I wince as his shell disappears out the door seconds before it closes behind him. That hurts. I have to stop thinking about them I guess. I can't keep piecing together my memory right now. There's no telling what'll happen if I remember someone or something else today. Last time my breathing became depressed, what'll happen next time? Will my blood pressure bottom out? Will my heart stop beating? I need to give my mind some time to rest and recover. If I can give it the night to recover from everything it's learned today then I can try and remember the others tomorrow.

Hopefully.

Or I'll induce a heart attack or stop breathing and suffocate.

I hope neither of those scenarios happens.

Great, I'm back on the couch. Again. I can't help but sigh in exasperation as Raph pushes me to sit down on it. I have a feeling that when this is all over this couch is going to have an unfortunate accident involving my saws-all and a pound of C4. Who cares if that's a little over kill? It'll make me feel better. Till Mikey starts whining then everyone in the lair will be complaining about server headaches. Shell, Raphael found the remote first, like I was really trying while I was thinking of the imminent destruction of the couch. I hope we're watch something where something doesn't blow up. With Raph something always has to blow up.

A show about dinosaurs? Raph hates dinosaurs. Ever sense we spent time in the past anything that doesn't include present day is on his shell list, especially dinosaurs. I think it was because he always had nightmares about Jurassic Park even though he won't admit to them. I wonder if he's sick. Huh? I fine myself staring at Raphael who I guess was watching me watch part of the show. Talk about creepy. His forehead is pinched together like it does when he's studying something. Great, I'm the next experiment in the lair I guess.

He waves his hand in the general direction of the television lazily. Yeah, yeah, I get the point. You want me to watch the TV while you watch me. At least the program is entertaining even without the dialog explaining what scientists believe happened back then. I doubt I'm missing much. I probably know exactly what they're saying anyways. I could probably narrate one of these things word for word by now, complete with references. I lean back a little more in the couch enjoying the bad CGI animation as a tyrannosaurs rex tears apart a diplodocus.

After a good half hour of what I'm guessing was a special on t-rex hunting techniques, the door to the lair slides open and Mikey, Blue and Casey come in. At least they're all home safe. Blue kept his promise. Wait a second… pizza?! They went out to get pizza! I can't decide if they're insanely stupid for taking that unnecessary risk or truly some of the best turtles and human ever. I never realized it but I've been craving pizza since I woke up. I hop over the back of the couch and head to the table where everyone seems to be converging. Mmmm… oh yeah, mushrooms and pepperoni pizza here I come.

I snake a hand around Mikey's waist and grab a piece of pizza before he devours it all. I wonder if the reason why I'm so small compared to the other three is because I' not as aggressive when it comes to meals. Nah, they're always the ones to drag me to meals because I get too wrapped up in a project and forget to eat. I just drink coffee to keep going. Maybe that's why everyone is on my shell about drinking it too much. I'm not addicted! I just like coffee… okay, so maybe I'm a little dependent on it but that doesn't make it a bad thing!

One piece down and more to come. A feeding frenzy of sharks has nothing on my family when it comes to pizza. I wonder what else they have for pizza toppings. Pepperoni and mushrooms maybe my favorite but it's nice to mix it up every now and then and try a new piece. Like a slice of Mikey's Hawaiian or a piece of Raph's Meatlover's. Of course, if he catches you swiping it you'll pay in the dojo the next morning.

"Ilyl rp jb, Ypai." Hey look, flying Meatlover's pizza. Casey's handing it back over his shoulder like he doesn't have a care in the world. I guess he thought I was Raph. Don't know how he can mistake the two of us. We're as different as night and day. Still… why look a gift pizza in the mouth. Raph's over there talking with Blue so he's obviously not going to take this piece. I snatch the pizza from Casey's hand, trying to snatch the way Raph usually does so he doesn't become suspicious and turns around. "Thwi lswyp alaaly kepflx pcm lulyrwihcj."

Mmmm… there's something so satisfying about swiping a pizza right out from under someone's nose. Or it's just the extra dose of protein I'm getting off the top of this pizza. Heh, here comes Raph, I have to see his face when he realizes I'm eating his pizza. I watch as he pokes a finger into Casey's side and begins to question him about where his pizza is I bet. Casey's just trying to wave him off. I can tell you right now that's not going to work, Casey. Suddenly they both go still and look over at me. Oops, busted.

Just as I'm opening my mouth to tell Raph 'I was here first' and intense burning feeling picks up in my mouth. What the shell? Oh no. Please tell me I didn't do what I just think I did. I look down on the pizza and nearly gag. Crushed red pepper flakes! I throw the half eaten slice of pizza to Raph as I head full tilt towards the kitchen sink. Mieky would never let me hear the end of it if I dropped a slice of pizza. Even if it was covered with red pepper flakes. Ick.

I'm so glad Blue's been keeping up on the dishes, he's such a model big brother. Ow. Don't think about that Don. You can't afford to remember anyone else today and go critical on them. Ugh… even running water into my mouth and then spitting it back out isn't doing anything to get rid of the burning in my mouth. Why the shell does Raphael have to have a taste for anything spicy enough to burn your stomach lining out?!

Someone is tapping on my shell. What?! Can't you see I'm trying to put a fire out here?! Hmm… milk? That's an even better idea then water. Milk is a base and will counter act the capsaicin in the pepper flakes and sooth the burn. I should have though of that. It's always best to drink milk or apple juice with exceedingly hot foods. I didn't know I could down and entire cup of milk so fast. I give a sigh of relief as I set the glass down on the counter. "Thanks, April." I say as I wipe the back of my hand across my mouth. "I didn't even think of that."

Wait a second…

_-"April?"_

"_APRIL!?"_

_Shell, why me? I told Casey I would keep her safe. I told him I wouldn't let anything happen to her. Of course I never suspected to be run off the road by the Dragons. And of course it had to be right off a cliff. Shell, what if she wasn't in her seat back there? She would have been thrown around like a rag doll. I got to get out of here. Great not only is my seat belt stuck but the steering wheel has been bent down over my legs. Even if I could get free of the seat belt I'm going to need some kind of leverage to bend the wheel down enough to let me out. _

_I wish I wasn't upside down._

_But how else does your vehicle land after a hellacious crash that involves you rolling down steep embankments? _

_At least I was able to pop the air bag and get that out of my face but there's no way I'm getting myself out of this seat on my own. I just don't have the strength for that. I'm dizzy. Not good. Being upside down is causing all the blood to rush to my head making it hard to think. I remember reading somewhere about how being upside down for long periods of time can actually kill you. Wait wasn't that in a novel? I don't think that that was ever actually proven… great my mind's already being effected by prolonged upside-downness… and now I'm making up words like Mikey. Great._

_I need to call in the rescue squad before I try anything else. I think I'm in shock. I know I can't just walk away from something like this without injuries but I don't feel like I'm hurt. With the wind shield shattered and the steering wheel pinning me to the seat I know there has to be something wrong with me. A cut, broken bone, internal damage (hopefully not that) I have to have something but I don't feel any pain. My hands are numb, I can't get my shell cell out of my belt. Either that or it's laying somewhere on the hill._

_What was that? Ow. Okay, so my neck is sore. Probably just mild trauma. If it was broke I would already be dead. What was that noise? It had to have come from the back of the van. It sounded like someone kicking metal or something being knocked loose. Is April awake? Whoa, okay the metal just definitely shifted. Is someone walking around- hey isn't that the beam from a flash light. Ow! My eyes!_

"_Donnie?" Thank shell she's alright. "Donnie, are you alright?"_

"_Yeah," my voice sounds anything but fine. It sounds like I swallowed gravel or something. "I'm good."_

_Yeah, I know you don't believe me April but you have to give me points for trying. "Right," was all she said as she crawls through the broken window to sit on the roof of the cab. She sets down the flashlight and begins to dig around in the small bag she has, producing a think roll of white gauze. "And this is coming from the turtle bleeding from the head."_

_Oh, so that's what that muffled drip was. Guess the dizziness didn't come from being upside down. She wraps the gauze around my head quickly and then using the flashlight looks up at my pinned legs. "Looks like you have a gash in your calf. Do your legs feel broken?"_

"_No just pinned," I trembling. It's really only noticeable while I'm holding the flashlight so she can use both hands to wrap my leg but its there. It's a good thing only the steering wheel is pinning me down. She wouldn't be able to reach up there otherwise. _

"_Are you cold?"_

"_More numb the anything."_

"_Shock?"_

"_Shock."_

_Okay, I didn't even know April swore. "Sorry," she says as I give her what I'm sure is a surprised look. "But it's going to be really tough to treat you while you're hanging from the ceiling."_

"_Is the radio back there still intact?"_

"_I already sent a message. Raph and Casey are on the way."_

"_And you're okay?"_

_She gives me a soft smile. "Don't worry about me so much, Don. It's alright to worry about yourself every once and a while."-_

She's always there for me.

_-"Donatello?"_

_My eyes snap open and I find myself staring blearily at a beaker sitting inches from my beak. Did I fall asleep on my notes again? Ugh… gross… as soon as I pick my head off my notes a piece of paper sticks to my face. How embarrassing… I guess I was drooling or something. Ick… I peel the piece of paper off my face and set it back down on the top of the pile of notes that had acted as my pillow for… about fifteen minutes. Joy. _

"_Hi April," I give her a soft smile but I can tell there's little behind it. I've been out straight for too long but who's going to take over if I take a break? I can do it. Just a few more hours and then I will hopefully figure out what's wrong with them. After they're on the mend then I'll get some rest. My eyes fall on the steaming mug cradled in her hands. Thank shell… coffee. It's just what I need to keep going for a few more hours. I really need to look into putting a coffee maker in here despite what my family says. Coffee is a way of life._

_She hands the cup over to me despite the frown on her face. I sense an overly concerned 'big sister' talk coming up. "Don, you need to take a break. When was the last time you actually slept?" What a silly question. She saw me face down on my notes when she first came in here. I try to tell her that but she cuts me off. "Catnaps on the workbench don't count."_

"_Don't worry about me April. I'll be fine." My tone is automatic and the answer is immediate. This isn't the first time I the past forty two hours she's gotten after me about sleeping. I doubt that this is going to be the last judging by the look on her face. _

"_You're not going to be alright for much longer at the rate you're going. Please, Don. Just go lay down for a few hours. I'll keep an eye on them for now." _

"_Every second counts April. You know that." I set the cup off to the side. Even the few sips I managed were liquid haven. The coffee was a little hotter then I thought it was. I burnt my tongue. I'm going to be feeling that for the next few days. "Whatever this toxin is seems to be attacking their limbic system. They maybe alright and stabile for right now but that could change in a second. The sooner I find an antidote the sooner Mikey and Raph will be up and moving. Then and only then will I be heading to bed."_

"_I though you found a cure?"_

_I can't help but wrinkle my nose at that last comment. Antidote? More like an addition to the problem then anything. "I was able to figure out a way to greatly reduce the affects of the poison but the serum I came up with is just as deadly as the original toxin. Instead of worrying that their hearts are going to stop beating or their breathing is about to stop, I have to worry about their bodies just giving out on them."_

"_Don, you've already accomplished so much. They are no longer in any immediate danger of dying. They're stabile. Instead of having to worry about their hearts exploding in their chests we just have t monitor them as if they had a serve case of the flu. Please Donnie, just lay down for a few hours. I promise to come and get you the second any of their symptoms change. For the better or the worst."_

_I have to admit, it is an enticing offer but there's just too much at sake here. Two of my brothers are in med bay slowly dying. I have to do something else to help them. I snap back the rest of the coffee despite the burning it leaves down my throat. I set it down on the workbench a little harder then I probably should have before I turn back to my work. "Not yet, April. Maybe in a bit." _

_Alright, now let's see. I've already isolated the compounds in both Mikey's and Raph's blood. They're both slightly different, as if they were mixed at different times. The poison in Mikey's blood stream doesn't appear to be half as refined as the one in Raph's. What really gets under my shell is the trace amounts of both Heroin and Speed in here. Why on earth are a pair of street drugs in here? Was this poison mixed in a meth lab or something? How much of this stuff do those guys have. Oh shell… what if they're planning on weakening the percentage of the poison and then putting it into pill or… huh… dust form? Are they going to try and make this stuff the newest drug in New York? Crud… I bet that's what they're planning. They just hit Mikey and Raph with an overly concentrated dose. If this stuff ever hit the streets… Double shell! I got tell-_

_Whoa! I grab at the workbench as the floor tilts unsteadily under my feet. What the shell? Did I accidentally infect myself with this stuff too? No. Impossible. I've been extra cautious handling this stuff and even more careful around Mikey and Raph. Besides I don't feel sick just insanely tired. Wait… Tired? Oh shell… shell, she didn't. Crud, the coffee! April drugged my coffee! I lose my grip on the bench as my knees buckle but I don't actually hit the floor. April catches me around the middle. I'm too heavy for her to carry on her own but she can hold me up which she does before slowly lowering me to the floor._

_I blink at the ceiling above me trying to stay awake. I can't believe she actually drugged my coffee. I'll have to keep in mind at how cunning she can be when she wants to be. She holding my head off the floor and I can feel her gently run a hand down the side of my face. "I'm sorry, Don, but Master Splinter told me to drug you. You need to rest too." Splinter had me drugged? Wow, talk about overbearing parenting. I guess April isn't the only one who can be overly manipulative when they have to be. Against my will my eyes slowly flutter shut as the drug forces me to go to sleep. "I'm so sorry Don."_

_Yeah right, you wanted me… to sleep… just as… m-much…-_

The person who keeps me from working too much.

-_"April… Anytime now," Preferably before these guys decide to throw me off the building. They've already broke my bo and I can just tell that head Foot ninja guru himself just wants to rip me out of my shell and hand it over to Shredder. I don't know who he is but shell he's good. I wonder if he's going to be an Elite one day. Considering how good he is at fighting now I would say deffinately yes._

"_Give me a second." I try not to gulp when she's says that. I really don't think I have a second. If tall dark and dangerous wasn't wearing a black mask I'm sure I would see him smirking at me. I can't help but start to back away from him as he starts towards me at a slow march. I'm seriously out of my league with this guy. "T-minus fifteen seconds and counting."_

"_That's music to my ears, April." I say hurriedly into the headset as I jump towards the edge of the building. I land cat-like on the roof's ledge and -before I can give myself a moment to really think about what I am doing- I jump off into space._

_It barely two seconds into my leap and already my mind has figured out how big of a splat I'm going to make if I screw up and end up hitting the pavement. That's a comforting thought. I guess I just can't mess up. Of course, jump off one of the tallest buildings in New York without a bungee isn't one of the smarting things I have ever done. Alright, fine. It's probably one of the stupidest things I've ever done._

_Shell, I'm getting close to terminal velocity. Anytime now Apr- Yes! I can't help but smile as the shellcopter flies over my head. There's the ladder. Only have one chance to- got it. I clutch at the rope ladder like my life depended on it. Okay, so it does depend on it. No, mind that does not mean you can calculate my splat radius from this height. I loop one leg through the ladder before looking back at the rooftop that's now below. Hmm… Creepy is gone. I'll have to worry about that later. Right now getting into the helicopter before my mind gives me anymore unsettling calculations would be preferable. _

"_Are you okay?" is the first thing out of April's mouth as I pull myself into the shellcopter and start securing the side door. _

"_Of course," my hands are not shaking. My hands are not shaking… okay so I lied. They are so shaking. They're shaking so much I can hardly hold the latch on the door steady. I dump my duffle on the floor and join April at the controls. I know she doesn't need my help in piloting it but I still et my eyes run over the gauges. It'll give me something to do other then my little bout of freefalling. How Raph can get a thrill out of it, I'll ever know._

"_Are you sure?" _

"_Yes, I'm sure." No need to snap at her, Don. She's just worried about you. _

"_Don," I always look at her when she starts talking in that really serious, business-like tone. "You're as white as I've ever seen you and your shaking like a leaf."_

_I sigh. What else can I do? "Trust me when I say I'm not making a habit out of doing that April. I don't understand how Raphael can enjoy doing stunts like that. All I could think of was how big of a splat I would make when I hit the ground."_

"_I'm guessing it was an accurate number?"_

"_Down to the millimeter." I can't help but feel a shiver trace up my spine. Shell, I guess I'm more scared by that then I thought I was. I need to calm down enough so Mikey can't have a field day on me when I get back to the lair. _

"_Don, I wouldn't worry about it. If you can figure out at exactly what second I need to fly the copter down a street so you don't hit the ground then you should just trust your calculations before hand. They've never proven you wrong yet."_

_I wish Mikey was here so I could knock on his head. I don't want to know what'll happen if one of my calculations are wrong. "You know what," I can't help but smile at her. "You're right about that but I still don't think I'm going to be doing stuff like this on a daily bases. I'll leave that to Raph."-_

She always has my shell.

_-…_

…

_W-where…_

_Where… am… I…?_

_Well… where ever I am I laying flat on my shell. At least it's on something soft. I don't know how many times I've woken up on my shell on some form of hard, uneven, and even jagged ground before. I think I'm in a bed. There's definitely a blanket over me and a pillow ticked under my head. No, it's not behind my head as much as it is behind my neck. Now that's odd. Because of the pillow's location y head is tilted back at a rather odd angle. It's not uncomfortable but not in one of the best positions to wake up in. I swear if this is one of Mikey's pranks and I have a stiff neck, I'm going to flog him if I get a chance. _

_Ow!_

_Moving was defiantly not in my best interest. My head hurts. Did I hit it on something? It sure does feel like I've had some form of head trauma. Why does it feel like I have the worst sore throat in history? I mean it even hurts to breath. It's feels like I burned it. Did I eat Casey spicy chili again or something? Something cold is laying over my eyes but I can feel a dull burning feeling there as well. What the shell is going on? What happened? Where is everyone? Are they okay?_

_Something off to my one side moved and I feel myself brace against the bed. Whoever has me has provided me with medical attention by the feels of it so I won't just attack without kowing who they are. Maybe it's Master Splinter, April or Le- "Donnie? Are you awake?"_

_It's April._

_I try and say something but the burning in my throat increases dramatically and I find myself trying to hack my lungs out of my mouth. "Easy Don. Just take it easy." I'm trying to April but shell this hurts. She's keeping a hand on my chest and the other on my forehead forcing me to stay laying down and keep my airway open. At least now I know why the pillow isn't under my head. It's keeping my head tilted back, keeping my throat and mouth open so it's easier for me to breath. Am I suffering from smoke inhalation or something?_

"_Donnie? I'm going to lift you up slowly. Clench your right hand if you become dizzy." Okay, something bad had to have happened if April is nursing me back to health. Usually when I'm as hurt as I think I am Raphael would rather die then leave my side. I hope he's okay. Hey look, other then weak headache I feel fine. A glass is pressed to my lips and I'm forced to take a couple sips of water. Shell, even water is making my throat burn. She settles me back onto the bed and I feel her fuss for a moment with the covers. I need to fine out what's going on. Hopefully now with my throat being wetted down slightly I'll be able to say something. "W-what… happ'n?" Wow, my voice is so gravelly that I barely even recognize it. _

"_What do you remember?"_

_What do I remember? Nothing. Why else would I be asking you April? Okay, Don, sarcasm isn't going to help you here. Just think back and try and remember what happened. I was in my workshop earlier today. What was I doing? I was trying to make a new gas pellet, something to disorient the enemy. Mace. I was trying to figure out if I could get mace into a smoke pellet. Oh shell now I remember. The chemicals reacted wrong. There was an explosion. No wonder my head hurts. My throat and eyes are burning from getting a concentrated dose of mace. Shell, I hope I didn't permanently damage anything. "Explos'n… m-mace."_

"_That's right. How do you feel?" _

_How do you think I feel? "H-hurts…"_

_The cloth is gently pulled off my face and I resist the urge to open my eyes. If there's a cloth over them it's obviously to protect them from light. The moment the cloth is taken away I can notice a drastic difference. They're burning. I can hear water trickling of to the one side. Hurry up, April. This is really starting to get to me. I can't even moan without my throat protesting the treatment. Shell, this sucks. I can't help but sigh as the cloth is reapplied over my eyes. _

"_I know you probably have a lot of questions to ask Don but talking right now isn't going to be easy." You don't know the half of it. "So I'm going to tell you what the others told me. According to them about ten hours ago there was an explosion from your workshop accompanied by a billowing yellowish cloud. They heard you turn on the emergency vents but when you still hadn't emerged from the workshop and the air in the lair was becoming harder and harder to breath they choose to abandon it." Great, I must have dosed the entire lair with mace. We're never going to get the stink out. "Raphael was able to get you out of the workshop and after you had… recovered enough they brought you here to rest." Translation: I was probably puking my guts out because of the mace in my stomach. Judging by how sore my stomach is that had to have lasted for awhile. "Right now, they're trying to figure out a way to air out the lair." That's not going to be happening in the near future. We'll be lucky to get that stink out of the lair before Christmas… of next year. _

_Were the others hurt? I hope no one else was exposed to that stuff. Oh shell, with his hypersensitive sense of smell Splinter must be worst off then me! Come on, you stupid throat! Work right! "The… guys…"_

"_Everyone else is fine, Don." Thank shell… "Raphael got a lung full of the mace when he was getting you out of the workshop but other then that no one was hurt." I can't help but relax deeper into the bed. I would have freaked if someone else had been hurt by my mistake. I know I know better then to mess wit__h __dipropylene glycol methyl ether__. What the shell was I thinking?_

"_Don. Don't blame yourself." I hate it when she knows I'm blaming myself. I have every right to be upset over what happened. What happened if the mace bomb had exploded premature or something during a fight. We wouldn't be ready for it and follow our enemies in the incapacitated category. "__You and I both know that this was all just a complete fluke. It's not like this little set back is going to make you stop experimenting is it?" I can feel the smile creep across my face. Getting me to stop experimenting is like trying to convince Mikey to give up comics and pizza or convincing Raphael to attend anger management classes. It was just impossible. "So just relax and be glad that this time the injuries are minimal."-_

One of the smartest women I've ever met.

The **only **women I've ever met.

A regular tom-girl.

My surrogate 'sister'.

April O'Neil.

Something suddenly pounds into the center of my chest and I bolt upright with a gasp. What the shell happened?! Two pairs of arms stop me from getting more then a few inches off the floor and I find myself staring up at the kitchen's ceiling with Raph on one side and Mikey on the other. Ow… my chest hurts… what the shell did Raph do? Punch me? It hurts to breath… come on, Don, don't stop breathing. I can hear Raph barking orders as he lifts me hurriedly into his arms. Whoa, make the world stop spinning… I wanna get off the ride…

Blue's standing in the kitchen. I can just see him over Raph's shoulder. His stance is just like when he was getting ready to leave the lair earlier tonight but slightly different. He looks more threatening and dangerous then he did before. I can see the worry in his eyes and the determination. I'm trying to be strong Blue… just don't… do… anything… stupid…


	20. Chapter 20: Blood is Blue Too

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_I think just about everyone has figured out Leo is remembered in this chapter._

Chapter Twenty: Blood is Blue Too

Mmmm…

Beep… Beep…

Wh-what's…

Beep… Beep…

… that noise?

Beep… Beep

… respirator on…

Beep… Beep…

…my face again…

Beep… Beep

… heart monitor?

Beep… Beep

Raphie? That you?

Beep… Beep

No… w-who are you?

Beep… Beep…

April?

Beep… Beep…

What happened to R-Raphie?

Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep…

…

My eyes snap open and I find myself staring blankly at the ceiling of med bay. My chest hurts. A lot. That's not a good sign. Did I suffer from heart failure? It sure as shell feels like it. I wonder if Raph broke anything trying to give me CPR. I shift underneath the blankets and grimace as the pain flares up from a dull throb to a light twinge. This sucks. I bring in a big gulp of air before releasing it and deep sigh. No nothings broken, that would have hurt a lot more then it did if there were any broken bones. It's just deep bruising as far as I can tell. Not that that's much of a difference.

There's movement off to my side and before I can even turn my head that way April leans over me. Shell, I've missed her soft smile. I wonder what time it is. I wonder exactly what happened. I know something happened to my heart from the beeping I heard earlier but right now I feel fine. I wonder where Raph is. Raph would never leave my side if I was in here, especially if he had me hooked up to a heart monitor. And why hasn't April called anyone in here or yelled out that I'm okay? Are they asleep? No, it feels too early for that. Something happened.

I start to sit up slowly. At least there are no restraints on me other than the blankets that I think someone tucked in underneath the mattress on purpose. Don't even think of trying to stop me April, I'm going to go find them. She hesitates when I give her a mild glare and I realize that Raph and them are not in the Lair anymore. April would have called for help by now, especially if I seemed like I was going to hurt her. Of course, glaring was never very common with me so when I do it I'm either really annoyed or very mad and I know she (and all of my brothers) know that.

I let my face soften from a glare into a smile as I finally sit up. Whoa, I'm wobbling a little. Thanks, April. She's gently holding onto my shoulders, offering enough support so that if I actually start falling she can control it so that I land on the bed and not on the concrete floor. I give myself a few moments to recover some sense of balance before slowly pulling the blankets off my legs and starting to crawl out of bed.

"Cb, Mbc. Mnc'w lulc wihcf pobvw jlw va rlw. Rbv cllm wb ylxw. Mbc!" No, April. I don't care how weak I feel, I'm going to find them. You can't keep me in here. I don't dare glare at her again so I go for the approach I know she can't resist. Unfortunately, I can't get Mikey's puppy eyes down right but passive resistance works just as well in a time like this. I stop trying to get off the bed and smile gently at her as I pull her hands off my shoulders. "…Mbc?" she asks in a small voice as she looks at me oddly. "Mb rbv fcbt dl?"

I have no idea what you just said April but don't worry. I'll figure out how to talk to you as soon as I find the guys. It's too quiet in here. It's never this quiet in the lair, even at night. I shift off the bed and nearly fall to my knees. Wow… talk about shaky. April takes hold of my shoulders again as I brace myself against the bed. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea but… I need to know. April is still trying to coax me back in the bed but I'm not going to lay down again until I find them.

I'm stronger then she is so there is no way she can actually force me back into bed even as weak as I am. I resist her gentle push and then reach up taking one of her shoulders in a firm grip. "I'm going to go find them, April. Please don't try and stop me." I watch her eyes closely. They're filled with confusion, sadness, hope and understanding. Good. She understands. That's all I need to see.

I push away from the bed and take several shaky steps towards the door. Thanks for the support April. I don't think I could have made it these whole five steps without you taking one of my arms over your shoulders. We keep going through the door, through my lab and out into the main room. Shell, since when did I feel like I ran half away across the city when I've just walked the ten steps out of my lab. I haven't been this weak and shaky since I had that killer flu a few years back.

The lair is definitely empty. I can tell Master Splinter is still here. The candles are shimmering softly from underneath his door. He's probably asleep -it is almost one- but I doubt that. Blue, Raph, Mikey and Casey aren't here. Sensei wouldn't sleep if they were out. He's always been awake until we've come back, no matter how late the hour is, he's always waiting for us to come home.

Oh on, April. There is no way you're putting me down on the couch. I don't care how weak and shaky I am. Let's go over here. No. Not the couch. Yes, that's better. No, not the other side of the couch! I don't want to be sat down on the couch, period. If I don't want to sit down on one side of the couch what makes you think I want to walk around and sit on the other end? April, cut it out. I- Ulp! I guess she lost her grip because now I'm back pedaling, trying to keep my feet under myself and- Oof! Ow. Hi table. Haven't seen you in a while. I could have done without seeing you for a while as well. I'm so glad that my shell took the brunt of that hit but still it hurt.

"I'm alright, April." Now she looks upset. "I'm alright." I just want to get off my feet as soon as possible or I'll fall over. I turn and, using a combination of the table and April as support, walk around the end and flop into one of the stools. I lean forward bracing my arms on the table in front of me so I don't slid off the side and end up on the floor. I feel like I went a couple of Rounds against Hun with no back up or time outs. "I'm fine April," she's still holding my shoulders. I smile trying to reassure her and give her the okay sign. She let's go hesitantly and than stands next to me for a couple of minutes as if she's expecting me to fall. Thankfully I don't.

Assured that I'm not about to fall over anytime soon, April goes back to reading from some of the books scattered about the table and jotting down notes. She's really still trying to figure out what happened to me? I would have thought she had it all figured out long ago. Amnesia can only be caused by a handful of drugs. Of course, by the time they were able to get a blood sample out of me the half life of most of those drugs would have already been up. April wouldn't have seen much if anything out of the ordinary. Well, as ordinary as a one hundred eighty pound talking turtle can get. With nothing to go on, trying to figure out what is wrong with me would be like trying to solve a riddle with no meaning. April's probably had to go through every type and form of mental disorder out there trying to figure out what is wrong with me.

I really should try and do something to help her but what can I do if I can't even read? I pull an open book sitting nearby closer and let my eyes scan over the page. Nothing. None of this is even looking remotely familiar. Shell… I let out and exasperated sigh. I feel so useless and I'm worried about where everyone went. Did something happen that made them leave the lair? What would make them leave the lair?

"Hw'x peyhjiw Mbcchl. Gvxw yleps." April gently squeezes my shoulder. The attempt to comfort me is nice but still… what the shell am I going to do? I need to find a way to do something. I've never felt so useless in my whole life. I shove the book away from me angrily and place my forehead down on my folded arms. April rubs a hand back and forth across the back of my neck and shoulders for a moment before patting my shoulder and then moving away from me. By the sounds of it she's heading for the other side of the lair.

So what can I do to help now? I'm incapable of speech and I'm illiterate. There's no way I could explain everything I've figured out and hypothesized through sign language. There's just too much if it. I'm useless… there's nothing I can do stuck like this. I don't know what to do. Raph and Mikey are always the ones calling me the answer turtle, Mr. Know-it-all-turtle, and Einstein and for once I wish it were true. If I knew everything I would have known about the ambush in the junkyard and avoided it! That would have made this mess a whole lot easier to deal with. And if I did get ambushed and wound up like this then at least I would have been able to devise a more effective way of communicating with my family.

A familiar scent fills the air as something is lightly placed down on the table next to me. April's hand is on my shoulder again. I wonder what she br- coffee? April brought me over a cup of coffee? And here she is always harping at me for drinking to much coffee. Well she was the one who said she always knew when I was upset because I would make myself a cup of coffee and then just stare at it. I wrap my fingers around the cup as I sit up a little more on the stool and pull the cup over to me, just cradling it in my hands. There's something about watching a cup of coffee as you feel the heat from it seep into your hands that's just so relaxing. "Thanks, April. I needed this," I know she can't understand a word I just said but judging by the look on her face she felt better about me.

She turns back to her note taking and pulls one of the books closer to her to see better. What's that under the book? I lift the cover enough and see a needle sitting there, innocently, in its sterilized packaging. I can't help but gulp at the sight of it and drop the book cover. I'm pretty sure that I'm suffering from post traumatic stress over what happened to me back in the lab. Whatever the drug was in the syringes burned.

A small makes me look up to see April looking worried and apprehensive. I guess she's a little worried that I'm going to freak like I did the last two times I was in a presence of a needle. While I'm uneasy about seeing it, I don't feel the same mind numbing panic that was dictating my actions before. No one here would willingly inject me with anything that would hurt me. And they wouldn't let anyone do it to me either without giving them a second opinion. I flash April a quick okay sign and the small smile she gives me tells me just how relieved that gesture was.

Actually, now that I think of it better, there is one thing I can do to help April with her research. I'm not too eager to be stuck with a needle again but I'm getting to the point that anything I can do to help me figure out what's wrong with me is going to be worth it. I point to the needle and than me. Judging by how she's shaking her head, she thinks I want to know if she's planning on using it on me. I cover her hand with my own and stop her from pulling the needle away. I point underneath our hands at where the needle is then pointing to myself. I make sure to add the little part of her taking the blood out of my arm and not putting anything in.

She looks skeptical. Don't worry April I'm not going to flip out again. I smile and wink at her. She smiles back and then holds her finger up indicating one before pointing to the clock. She's only going to try to do this once. Understandable. I nod my head in agreement. Alright, Don, don't freak. I don't even want to think of what I could do to April if I attacked her. I would never be able to forgive myself if she was hurt.

The disinfectant is cold on my skin but I school my features enough to not flinch too badly from it. I'm pretty sure if I jumped three feet into the air, April would have a mild heart attack. She's overly tense and watching my every movement as she preps to take some of my blood. She's ready to jump away from me if I can't handle the needle. I can do this. It's just a needle in the hand of my best friend. It's not for some insane doctor's research or anything. It's. Just. April.

The needle barely presses through the skin and I force myself to look away. I've got to control my breathing. It's a little too fast and I can feel my heart start to pick up the pace. I know I'm scared of the needle but I am not scared of April. I trust her. I force myself to close my eyes and focus on my breathing. It's rhythmic, soothing. This is why I enjoy meditating once a day. It's nice to just clear your head of all thoughts for a half hour. When you come out of it it's as if you just took a short nap but better. I can feel the needle being pulled out of my skin. I wasn't able to slip into deep meditation but that brief minute or two in meditation helped a lot. I don't feel half as weak as I did (not that I'm going to try anything) and April was able to get a blood sample before I took her head off. Not that I would but had I panicked there would have been no guarantees.

My hands are shaking slightly. I guess I was more freaked out about that than I though I was. April already has the blood sample over at the microscope further down on the table. When did she put the bandage on my arm? She's scribbling down notes before going back and looking through the scope at the sample. I wonder what she's looking at. She takes her notes and walks around to the other side of the table. She pulls a book from the middle of the table and flips back a couple hundred pages to look at a certain page.

I really what to know what she saw, I may not be able to read any of the books but I know enough about my anatomy that I should be able to come up with a reasonable good hypothesis. Then I could try to sign it out to April so she can follow up on it. That's going to be a pain and a half. I'm going to have to keep it simple. This signing/charade type of language isn't good for technical terms. Still… it'll be better then just sitting here and doing nothing.

My minor meditation helps give me the strength I need to get up and walk over to where the microscope is. I keep a hold of the table just incase. I don't want to end up on my shell, then April will put me on the couch no questions asked. Stupid couch. Great, now my hands are shaking so much I can't adjust the focus on the lens. Steady… steady… there! Okay now that I have a better focus let's see what's going on with me.

Hmmm… they look like normal blood cells. I seem to have a normal concentration of red cells to white in my system. There are no traces of any form of trauma. I seem completely fin- No, wait. They're not the right color. Typically when blood hits oxygen it turns from blue to a deep red. This red is fairly deep but it seems to light. As if something is blocking the oxygen from fully infecting the blood cells. "So that most likely means that my blood was saturated with the drug I was given. If that's the case then I could have traces of this stuff all the way down to the cellular level of my body." Shell, talk about a nightmare. It's going to take my body forever to naturally purge this out of my system. "Charcoal is used to help overdose victims recover from the drugs in their systems. It's possible to use that in this case as well, though I'm not too eager to eat charcoal. It could work." Of course, if I had such an influx of drugs in my system there could be damage. Oh… shell… what if this speech thing is permanent? Don't think of that. Just don't think about that for right now.

I take the long five steps back to my stool and sit down in a slight daze. Shell. I hope that this speech deprivation is only temporary. I rub at my temples for a moment before taking a deep and calming breath. I need some coffee. I take the semi cooled mug and take a swig. Shell, it's still pretty hot. Alright, I'll worry about the speech deprivation after I've remembered who Blue is. If I've remembered everyone else here the it's fairly obvious that I should be able to remember who he is as well. At least I hope I can remember who he is.

"Mbc?" I look up at April who is again giving me that odd look like she did when we were fighting over me getting out of bed. "Pyl rbv peyhjiw?" I know you're worried about me April but there is little either one of us can do about this for now. When I'm feeling a little more up to it I'm going to have to tell April what I think is going on. I smile and give her an okay sign even if that's not one hundred percent true. I don't even want to think of life without the ability to speak to my family again. If I was born mute I don't think it would be half as bad as it's going to be if I've become more or less mute. I'll never be able to confer with sensei, joke with Mikey, talk to Raph, or act as a confidant for Le-

Hey, the door open! They're back and-

… What the shell happened?!

Mikey's the last one through the door looking pale and kind of shaky. It looks like he saw a ghost or at least claims it was a ghost. Casey' right before him looking concerned and angry all at the same time. Raph is holding onto Blue's shoulder and is looking somewhere between hurt, angry and worried all at the same time. It's Blue that really concerns me. It looks like he got into a fight –a real bad fight- but somehow he was able to pull off a victory and walk away unscathed like he usually can. There's blood on the hilts of his swords and there's blood streaking across his hands and up his wrists and arms. Some of the streaks are going up past his elbows. It look like he took a couple of punches to the face, his lip is cut open and blood has been smeared across his chin and there are a few splatters across his chest. Whether that's his blood or someone else's I don't want to know.

I didn't realize I was on my feet until my knees started trembling under me. This could be a problem. Raph leads Blue right into Splinter's room. I hope Blue's going to be okay. He looked… distant. As if he was lost somewhere only he could see. Mikey and Casey stop nearby just watching them as they vanish through the door. I think everyone in the room is looking at the doorway. I knew something bad had happened. I just knew it. Blue… what the shell did you do?

Oop! My knees suddenly give out and I fall back onto the stool which proceeds to scrap noisily along the floor. Oops. It seems like I'm the center of attention now. Might as well make use of it, "What happened to Blue?" Of course they all look at me like I've grown another head. I point towards Splinter's doors and hold my hands out like all the teenage girls do on TV when they have no clue of what happened and are agitated. I bet that had to look pretty funny.

Mikey walks over looking a little guilty and 'asks' me if I'm okay. "Physically fine, mentally no and don't try changing the conversation! What happened to Blue?!" I'm actually kind of proud that I didn't shout that last bit as I point towards the door. This is nuts, what the shell did he do? He's the one whose always suppose to think things through before doing anything. He's even more cautious than I am.

Mikey seems a little taken aback by my obvious distress. Okay, so maybe it ain't so much distress as it is being flabbergasted and concerned. Shell, I'm so upset I'm thinking in bad grammar. Ain't ain't a word! GAH! I take a moment to take a deep breath and scrub my hands over my face. Freaking out isn't going to help me here. Calm down. Okay… that's a little better. "Mikey," I look at him and point towards the door. "What happened to Blue?"

Mikey hangs his head and lets out a deep sigh. Now I know he's going to tell me what happened. Mikey always tells me what's going on. He points to me and tilts his head off to the side resting it on his hands then points to the clock. After I had fallen asleep, probably after the attack was done. He points towards Sensei's door, acts like he's sneaking away, and then points out the front door. Blue snuck out after I had fallen asleep. Mikey then points to himself, Casey and waves his hand towards the door and the places the blade of his hand over his forehead as if he's looking for something. He then points like he found it and using his fingers 'dash' across the back of his hand. He points back to the door and gestures to where Blue had blood on him. So they found Blue like that after he snuck out of the place. That still doesn't tell me what happened. Mikey points back to the door and acts like he's talking. Mikey punches his fist, points to his foot and… Why is he acting like he's flipping coin? Mikey points to his head and then down at the coin on the back of his hand… Holy shell…

Blue attacked Foot Headquarters.

On his own.

I think my jaw just dropped through the planet and ended up in China. "What the shell was he thinking? He could've been killed!" Judging by the look on Mikey's face, he totally agrees with me. That probably was one of the stupidest things any of us had ever done and between Mikey and Raph that's a lot. I've had my moments but I don't think I would ever do something that stupid.

The door opens and closes with a quiet snap that draws everyone's eyes to it again. Blue isn't the one who left the room and, what a surprise, Raph looks angry. I guess he's mad at Blue for taking off and leaving him behind. I bet Raph would love to give Doctor Saka a piece of his mind. Uhh… actually, I think Raph is mad at me. Why else would he be glaring like he is at me? "Tipw whl xilee hx il mbhcj va?" Yeah, he's pointing and yelling at me. This is going to suck.

"Il tpx tbyyhlm pobvw rbv jvrx pcm ylkvxlm wb epr mbtc." Thank you for coming to my rescue April but I don't think that's going to help much.

"Wilc rbv xibvem ipul whlm ihd wb wil olm. Rbv'yl mbcl hw olkbyl." I wonder if Mikey will run inter- Oh, thanks Mikey. Why the shell did you have to get out of his way? You could have stood up to him for my sake but did you? Nnnnoooo. Of course not. It's like I've never done that for you before. Oh shell, he's right next to me. "Nbdl bc, rbv'yl jbhcj wb olm tilwily rbv tpcw wb by cbw."

He tries to snatch my wrist but I'm able to jerk it out of the way in time. I point it at him and say in my most serious don't-mess-with-me-voice, "Don't even think about picking me up, Raph." He looks at me, looks at my finger, and then loo- mad! Oh shell, he looks mad! Before I can even blink he's grabbed my wrist in a tight but gentle grip. With a growl Raph jerks me off the stool, flips my arm over his shoulders then stoops grabs my legs and lifts me off the ground before I can even blink. I hate it when he does this.

"Raphael! Put me down!" I swear if he tries to put me on the couch I'm going to give him the worst bloody nose he's ever had. "This is so humiliating." I thump my head several times against hit shoulder. I really don't think I have the strength to walk anywhere on my own let alone try and wiggle out of Raph's grip. At least he walked by the couch. I guess he's taking me to my room because I don't think he's going to take me out the front door. "If you ever pick me up again after all this is done Raph, I'm going to put so much laxatives in your food that you're going to have to move into the bathroom for a week." Yes, revenge after this is going to be so sweet.

Raph carries me straight over to my bed the minute we enter my room. I have to admit, I don't know who the better mother hen in disguse is. Raph can really give Blue a run for his money especially if he feels guilty or he's upset about something. Judging on how he's tucking me in and smoothing down the sheets, Raph is upset. I don't blame him, I still haven't found out if Blue's going to be okay.

Despite Raph's every intention on keeping me laying down I sit up. Scowl all you want Raph, I'm going to ask you either way. I point out of the room in roughly the direction of Splinter's room and, for good measures so that Raph knows what I am talking about, act like I'm pulling a pair of swords from my back. Then I make an okay sign while trying not to look to upset and worried. Raph stares at my hand for a moment before nodding his head yes. "You don't have to lie to me, Raph." You can tell when Raph is lying, you can see it in his eyes. He doesn't know if Blue is going to be alright any more then I do.

I had let my head fall so I was looking in my lap but I find myself watching Raph as he perches next to me on the edge of the bed. He hugs me close to him and buries his forehead into my neck. "It's going to be alright, Raph." I can feel the dampness on my shoulder, not much, but it's there. I hold him just as close as he is me and begin stroking the back of his head. He's always calmed down for me in the past before when I've done this.

It last maybe a few minutes tops before Raph sighs against my shoulder and lifts his head out of the crook of my neck. He rests his chin on his shoulder as one of his hands slips up to the back of my neck and begins to rub at the muscles there. I wish I could always get neck massages. He keeps it up, rubbing my neck in the same pattern as Blue always does. I can't help but yawn. I get it now, tricky turtle. He's trying to put me asleep. And it's working too.

I'm half asleep by the time he lowers me back onto the bed on my side and flips the covers up over me. He keeps up the massage, slowly kneeing my muscle until I feel like I've liquidity and am being soaked up by the mattress. "H thxi rbv tlyl rbv pjphc Mbc." Hmm… what are you saying Raph? Just don't stop the massage… "Thwi Elb pnwhcj ehfl dl, tl nbvem vxl p xlcxhoel wvywel yhjiw pobvw cbt." I barely remember when he stops rubbing my neck to rest his hand on my side. A few more minutes later, I feel the bed shift and watch through bleary, half-mast eyes as Raph leaves the room.

…

…

My eyes snap open and I find myself staring at the wall wide awake. What the shell is up with this? I sit up and look over at the clock to- Gah! It's barely even three thirty? I've been sleep for what… an hour and a half? Real smooth there, Don. You're having all kind of health problems and you can't even stay asleep for more than a couple hours at a time. I sigh and stare up at my ceiling in annoyance. I think that this is worst then insomnia. At least with insomnia you haven't fallen asleep yet.

Wait… What was that?

I sit up and listen for a moment and then hear it again, the faint clink of dishes being moved around. Who the shell is in the kitchen this early in the morning? It can't be Mikey, it's way too early breakfast. I throw the covers off and quietly sneak out my door and peer over the railing. The lights are on so someone is definitely down there. I don't think I'm up for hopping down off the railing so I'll just play it safe and walk down the stairs.

It's Blue. It looks like he got in and took a shower after he was done being talked too by Splinter. There are a few bruises on his arm I didn't notice because of all the blood earlier but other then that he looks completely fine. He's in the middle of making tea by the looks of it. First he had to wash out a mug for himself and that must have been the clinking I heard earlier. He doesn't seem that happy to see me. I can tell by that look on his face he wants to know why I'm up. I wonder if he knows I was up earlier.

Okay, Don, think up a reason for being up before Blue put you back to bed. I rub at my eyes and shrug before pointing to the mug in his hand, taking a deep breath and resting my head on my hands off to the one side of my face. He seems to think about it before pulling out a chair and pointing to me. I gottcha, Blue. I'll sit down and let you do everything. Again.

I sit and watch as he cleans up another cup for me then divides out the proper amounts of dried herbs to make tea. I bet he's going to put chamomile in mine. He walks over and hands me one of the steaming mugs before taking the seat next to me. I think I'm becoming psychic or something. There's definitely chamomile in this tea. And I see a bed in my future, as soon as I'm done this tea that is. Blue's starring at his tea as if he could see the answer to all his problems in there. I take another sip of my tea. He'll start talking to me when he's good and ready.

"H ibclxwer wibvjiw xil tbvem fcbt tipw ipaalclm wb rbv Mbc." There he goes. Tell me everything and anything you need to Blue, you look really out of it. "Ovw Fpyph xtlpyx bc ily ibcby wipw xil mhm cbw bymly wihx wb ipaalc. Xil xlldlm px alyaelslm or wihx tibel wihcj. Cb dpwwly tipw Ypai dpr xpr, H olehlul ily. Rbv nbvem xll hw hc ily lrlx, Mbcchl. Xil mhmc'w fcbt pcrwihcj pobvw wihx. Xil tpx hcwlylxwlm hc wil Kbbw xbemhlyx wipw tlyl pkwly rbv. Xil xlldx wb olehlul wihx tibel wihcj tpx p opnfmbby balypwhbc wipw xil mhmc'w paaybul." He sighs heavily into his mug. "Hk xil'x cbw ylxabcxhoel kby wihx wilc wil zvlxwhbc hx tib mhm wihx pcm tilyl pyl wilr? H'd jbhcj wb wpfl Dhflr pcm Ypai thwi dl wbdbyybt chjiw pcm tl'yl jbhcj wb jb khcm tib wil ylxabcxhbel bcl kby pee wihx hx." He smiles sadly at me. "H thxi rbv nbvem wpef xb rbv nbvem wlee vx tipw tl'yl va pjphcxw. Hw's tlhym cbw ipuhcj rbv wilyl wb opnf vx."

I feel like I should say something, help to alleviate his fears somewhat. I reach over and gently take his wrist giving it a gentle squeeze. "I know you can't understand me but it's going to be alright. I'll be better soon and then all four of us can go and show Saka not to mess with this family." I smile at him and tighten my grip on his wrist for a moment before letting go. "If I know you and Raph at all, Mikey and I will get to just sit back and watch the show." He seems better. At least he's smiling again but that can be a good thing or a very bad thing with Blue. It depends on where his swords are at that time. That's how you know which mood he's in.

Since his swords aren't drawn I know he's in a good mood. He takes our empty cups to the sink. I didn't realize I had drank mine so fast. Well, I was waiting a while before Blue started talking. That's probably where I drank the most of it. Now he's coming back over to me to shoo me off to bed I bet. I slide out of my chair and turn back to the stair- or not. Blue's hugging me. What is it with everyone and hugging me lately? I can't deny that I hate it, if anything it's the exact opposite. Since we can't talk to each other, it seems like the only time they know I'm still here is by the looks they give me and when they touch me. It's also a nice reassurance that they are still thinking of me. "Wipcfx kby petprx olhcj ilyl kby dl Mbc."

"Anytime you need me I'll be here Blue." I rest my head against his shoulder and yawn into his neck. I think I'm going to go to bed and not get up until tomorrow night. That sounds like a plan.

He holds me a while longer and I resort to leaning more and more of my body weight on him to get the message across that I want to go to bed. "Nbdl bc. Hw'x whdl kby rbv wb jb tb xella Mbc." Huh? What did he- Eep! Okay, the whole 'let's carry Don around like a blushing bride to be' gag is starting to get really old! However, as I yawn into his shoulder I realize I'll probably be asleep before he even gets me to the top of the stairs.

I'm semi awake by the time he gets me into my room and puts me to bed. He makes sure that the blankets are covering me before he sits on the edge of the bed and begins to rub at the back of my neck again. Mmmm… déjà vu… but it feels so good. I need to figure out a way to get a neck massage all the time. Now there's an invention worthy of the Nobel Prize. His hand slips away from my neck and he pats my shoulder several times before leaving. I'm yawning into the pillow as he grabs the door and starts to close it. "Jbbm chjiw Mbc," he then closes the door with a quiet click.

I know he probably won't hear it with me half mumbling in my sleep but I say it anyways. "Night Leo," My eyes snap wide open when I realize what I just said. Crud…

_-Mmmm…_

_What time is it?_

_I yawn into the pillow my face is buried in and stretch underneath the blankets. I really needed to take that nap. It's the first time in the past two days I've been able to rest with more then a quick catnap on the keyboard. I let my hands trail off the bed lazily still halfway between sleep and reality. Maybe I should just doze for the next few minutes until Leo comes and wakes me up fo-_

_Wait a second…_

_Leo?_

_I bolt out of bed. This isn't my bed. This is one of the gurneys I have set up in med bay. I look over at the bed next to mine and sigh in exasperation. Why am I not surprised to find that bed empty? I must have fallen asleep and Leo snuck out of bed. At least he was kind enough to put me up on the other bed. I must have really been asleep for him to be able to pick me up and put me to bed without waking me. Of course the fact that he shouldn't pick up anything heavier than a gallon of milk probably never occurred to him. _

_When I get my hands on him…_

_I'm half stomping out of the lab and head straight across the floor to the dojo. Where else would my older brother who has no concept about his own well being and health be? I can hear him even before I open the doors. I roll my eyes and shake my head slowly. I can't believe him. There are times a turtle can stand down. Especially if his brother/medic tells him, no… __**orders**__ him to take it easy for once._

_I jerk open the door to the dojo and come across exactly what I thought I would find. Leo's practicing… or at least trying to. It's bad enough that his right arm was dislocated yesterday but that gash in his side is only adding to the pain. The gang member was able to get close enough to him and slice a shallow cut between Leo's shell and plastron. That area is so sensitive that I'm surprised Leo didn't holler in pain when it happened. The wound was so shallow that I didn't even have to put any stitches in it but all he's been doing in here is aggravating it, making it hurt ten times as much as it was._

_Even though I know he knows I'm here he continues to practice with one hand, going through a simple kata that focuses on balance more then strength and speed. At least he's going about it slowly. If I had caught him trying to do anything more advanced I probably would have flipped my lid. As if I wasn't going to do that now. "Leo, what the shell are you doing?!" _

_He doesn't pause in his slow and precise movements when he answers me. "I'm taking it easy."_

_Talk about having your words thrown back at you. "Not what I meant Leo and you know it." I walk into the room fully intending to drag him out of here if he doesn't come willingly. "When I tell Raph to take it easy then promptly lock him in his room to keep him out of here what makes you think that I won't do the same to you?" _

"_I'm fine Don. I'll be done in a minute." _

_What a typical 'I-know-best-big-brother' response. With a sigh I reach out and catch the wrist of his good arm. Okay, now cue older brother glare. "Leo, I told you the damage you could cause by doing something like this. If you never want to be able to use your right arm properly again I'll leave and you can continue. However, I highly recommend you listen to what I'm telling you and you'll go lie down this instant." _

"_I don't see how practicing katas with my left arm and my legs are going to affect my right arm."_

_Of course you don't. You haven't read enough about muscle and bone structure to know what's going on inside you when you practice. "Leo, your muscles are all interconnected with each other as are your bones. Damage to your right arm can be aggravated by moving your left arm too quickly. It's the same thing with bones. You may be twisting your knee every other day but the real problem is in your hip which is slightly popped out of its joint. Leo, please. I study all this for a reason. Trust me." He's moved out of his stance and has lowered his wrist which I'm still holding onto. He's glaring at his arm as if it was the Shredder or something. "Leo, it won't kill you to take a break for a few days. Don't worry we can take care of ourselves, you don't have to always protect us."_

"_Yes, I do," he says looking at me with sad eyes. "I don't know what I would do without any of you."_

_I squeeze his wrist and pull on it slightly to lead him back to the room. "Don't worry, it'll take more then Hun with a track tie to wipe out any of us. Now come on, let's get you back to bed." He submits to me taking him back to the medical room and settling him onto his bed before I pull over the chair I had been sitting in before I fell asleep and make myself comfy in it. This was going to be a long night if I had to keep going and bring him back in here after he's snuck out to the dojo. _

"_Don. Go to bed. You need to get some sleep too."_

_Of course, worried about me rather than himself, "I'll be fine Leo. I need to monitor that cut for infection. If you develop an infection in you body cavity I honestly don't think I could help you that much."_

"_I'll be fine Don. Just get some rest, you look beat." I open my mouth to protest only to have him cut me off. "And the cut isn't deep enough to have pierced through to my body cavity. Stop feeling guilty about me getting hurt and get some rest." _

_Okay, I wasn't expecting that but I should have. It is Leo after all. "It was my fault Leo. You could have been killed."_

"_I had the chance to twist around and let it hit my shell. You would have taken that hit in the chest. It would have killed you."_

_He's right. It would have killed me if he hadn't knocked me out of he way. "Leo I-"_

"_Don. Go to bed. If I have to rest then so do you."_

_I want to argue with him. All I can see is him knocking me over and then taking a two hundred pound piece of wood in the back that's been thrown by Hun. I had fully though he was dead when I ran over to check on him. He had been unconscious and pale… I thought that I had-_

"_Don. It's alright." Leo warps his arm around me. He really shouldn't be out of bed. "Come on. Let's get you in bed. You need your rest just as much as I do."-_

Pain suddenly burst through my chest knocking the air out of me and stealing my voice.

_- I can't help but shiver despite the humid air. A healthy dose of pain and fear would make anyone feel cold. Though I'm pretty sure I'm starting to go into shock if I'm not there already. I want to lick my lips, they feel dry, but the hand clamped over my mouth is preventing me from doing that. As it is I should be focusing on my breathing. I'm still trying to pant and I'm making too much noise trying to drag the air into my lungs through my nose. _

_They're getting closer. Those hunters are some of the best for a reason. They nearly killed me all because they think its sport. Disgusting. Going out and killing something just so you can say you killed it. Just for the fame and glory. Just for the bragging right. I'm so glad I was able to put a couple of those men out of commission for a while. Maybe that'll give them a reason to stop such senseless killing. It makes me sick just thinking about it._

_Okay, so maybe I really am trying not to throw up. My thigh's probably infected by now. I knew I should've taken more time trying to clean it out with rain water but those men never gave me a chance. They chased me for a good forty eight hours straight. They're insanely good trackers I'll give them that. Every time I tried to take a break I ended up having to either fight a few minutes later or run for my life. Usually fighting with them was out of the question, using bolos to trip me up so their buddy can jump on my shell and stab me is so unfair._

_Their voices are echoing off the cave walls so I can't tell where they are or even what they're saying. I wish I could see what was happening but there would be little I would do in a fight if we got into one. I'm too badly hurt to be able to do anything effectively. I could try throwing up on one of them, that would work, but other then that I'm defenseless. I'll only get in Leo's way if those guys spot us. His hand is pressed tightly over my mouth and the other one is clutching on of his katanas as he crouches low over me. _

_Another chorus of voices and Leo stoops down even more. Our plastrons are pressing together and I can feel the muscles in his leg twitch against my side as he readies himself to spring at them if they get to close to us. I'm so glad I'm not claustrophobic. Leo's face is a few inches from mine but he's to busy watching the men over the edge of the rocks we're hiding behind to give it much notice. I'm sure as shell noticing. I think my arm's broken. Leo's added weight is making it hurt ten times more than it was before. _

_Slowly I feel him relax as he shifts off me, keeping his eyes on the hunters at all times. Their voices are leaving, growing dimmer and dimmer until the cave is once again shrouded in silence and darkness. I wish one of them had dropped their flashlights. I hate working without eyesight. _

_The faint sound of Leo seething his sword reaches my ears as finally takes his hand off my mouth. I open it intending to ask him a huge list of questions but he merely presses a finger over my lips silencing me. I feel him lean over me and he whispers in the barest of breaths in my ear, "Stay quiet." Okay, I guess I'm just supposes to shut up now but what about Raph and Mikey? Where are they? Are they being hunted by those men too? Why were we brought to South America? What's going on? I hate it when I'm left in the dark._

_No pun intended._

_Leo lifts me up into his arms and I feel him begin to move deeper into the cave. Shouldn't we be leaving the cave? I open my mouth to say something but he shifts his grip around and I find my face press into his shoulder. I hear him 'shh' me quietly in the dark. This is ridiculous. The only good thing about him holding me so close is that he's warm. I press my face into his shoulder trying to soak up as much heat as I can._

_He continues to move through the cave as if it's second nature. Well for him I guess it is. He spent almost two years down here. Of course he would know his way around. I lick my lips for what seems like the thousandths time when Leo stops walking and lowers me slowly to the floor. Shell, that's cold. "Don? Are you awake?" he whispers._

_I really wish I wasn't. "Y-yeah."_

"_Where are you hurt?"_

_It would be easier to tell you where I'm not hurt. "My arm's broken, I have a bullet burn on my side, I think I either twisted or sprained an ankle, I have a deep gash in my right thigh which I think is infected, I have several cracked ribs, more bruises then I can count, and I hit my head pretty hard." His hands begin to run over my head looking for any lumps that could indicate head trauma. I don't think I have a concussion, it doesn't feel like one. I think I just have a pounding headache. His hands go from my head down to my thigh and start playing over the wrappings I was able to tie around it in one of my brief interludes from being chased. I should try and get some of my questions answered while I can. "Leo?" he makes a noise in the back of his throat to indicate he's listening. "What the shell is going on?"_

_He pauses for a moment before checking the wound on my side. I can't help but hiss at the sting. Shell, this sucks. "When I was down here I obviously pissed off the local warlord to the point where he swore revenge on me. You three were just drag into this mess on accident." _

_Some accident. We were drugged and brought here for revenge? Wow, how original. "What exactly does this revenge entail?"_

_His fingers are moving over the break in my arm and I can't help but gasp. Shell that hurt. "Sorry about that. What was that book about the man who hunts another man because he's hunted all the other big game he can and doesn't find it as challenging anymore?"_

"_The Most Dangerous Game. It was a short story written by Richard Connell"._

"_We're in a similar situation here." I feel like my jaw hit the floor. "Whoever is able to bring back one of us as a trophy gets ten million dollars and the 'trophy'." A shiver creeps down my spine. Shell… I was nearly killed… "If the four of us can find each other and escape back to New York, he'll call the hunt off."_

"_We've got to find Raph and Mikey." What of they've already been- No! No, they can't be-_

"_Don! Relax! I'll find them after I've hidden you. You're in no shape to do anything right now. Don't worry, it'll be alright." Hide me? Where is he going to hide me where those guys aren't going to find me? "This cavern goes all through out the valley like a sewer system. I made a temporary home when I was training down here. It's well hidden. You'll be safe there while I go find Raph and Mikey." I feel him lift me into his arms again. "Don't worry. It's going to be alright. Try and get some rest."-_

Shell! I open my mouth to try and call Leo back but nothing comes out. I was afraid of that.

_- Talk about a new twist on things. Leo and Raph had another fight about something but for once it wasn't Raph who stormed out of the lair. It was Leo and he didn't look particularly happy when he left. Of course he had just been in a yelling match with Raph for the better part of an hour and that would make anyone unhappy. I wish those two could just learn to get along with each other. Why do they always have to fight over the smallest things?_

_I take a running leap and land easily on the peak of a roof, sliding to the edge and jumping to the next. I can understand if they're mad at each other but Leo still shouldn't be running around topside without some form of backup. He was the one who started the whole 'buddy system' policy. Just like Leo to say one thing to keep everyone safe but when it comes to his own safety those rules conveniently vanish._

_I pause on the roof I'm on and look around to get my bearings. Leo usually comes to this part of town when he's in a bad mood. He said once that it was because he can see the Huston easily and the stars that are resting over the Ocean in the distance. Leo always did have a thing for stargazing when we spend time up at the farmhouse. It doesn't surprise me that he finds one of the only places in the city to stare at the stars when he's mad._

_I'm about to head to the next roof to continue my search when I feel someone watching me. Who? I scan the roof I'm on one more time. I know it's Leo, the Foot are easier to spot then he is and Dragons usually stay off the roofs as much as possible because there's no one up here to menace except for us and well… they're not that stupid. Usually. The barest of movements catch my attention and look up to see Leo sitting in the lotus position half hidden in the shadows on the roof of the water tower. I know he wasn't there a moment ago… Creepy._

_He's gone back to watching the stars, ignoring me as I walk towards him. I know he wants to be alone. He doesn't want to talk about the way he acted or what he said to Raph. He just wants to sit and let his anger drift away into the night. I don't climb up to sit next to him. I walk underneath the tower sit with my shell to the main support setting my bo on the ground next to me where I can easily reach it if I need to. Now comes the wait until Leo feels up to talking about all this._

_I catch myself dozing a couple times and shake my head violently to wake myself up. I should've known that Leo would want to spend the entire night out here. The sky to the east is slowly brightening signaling that the dawn of a new day is coming. I hear Leo shift on the planks above me as I yawn into my hand. This has been one long night. "You didn't have to wait for me if you were tired."_

_I gasp, jerking as my half asleep mind snaps fully awake. Leo. It's just Leo. Calm down. "Shell, Leo. Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"_

_He's frowning as he kneels next to me. "I made more than enough noise for you to hear me. This is the third all nighter you've pulled in a row, Don. You need to get some sleep that does not include your keyboard as the pillow."_

_How did I know that he was going say that? "Yeah, well I didn't plan on sitting out under a water tower all night either."_

_Oops. That was a little harsher then I intended. At least Leo doesn't look to upset. He looks more guilty then anything. That figures. "Sorry. I should have sent you home when you first showed up."_

"_I wouldn't have listened to you anyways." I'm stiff and sore from sitting here in a static position all night. I stretch out my legs to get the blood flowing again so that I might be able to walk without limping. Great, my foot's asleep. "Everyone was worried when you stormed out of the lair like that."_

_He looks away from me and out to the ever brightening sky, "I was just frustrated. I'm sor-"_

"_Leo, stop apologizing," I think my long nights are catching up to me. I have one shell of a headache starting. "We're teenagers. Fighting is bound to happen as we strive to find our niche in society and as our hormones run ramped through our bodies. It's natural. Name one television show where there is a group of teenagers that don't fight among themselves." I rub at my temple. Why do I have to have a headache now? Leo's not saying anything. "See, arguing among ourselves is going to happen. What we have to remember is that making up afterwards is important." _

"_You're right," it's faint but in the silence of the near dawn hours Leo's voice is loud. I yawn again. I really need to wake up. "I can tell when you're tired. You lose your patience's and have a tendency to snap."_

_I throw a half hearted glare at him. He's right even if I don't like it. "I'm not being snappy."_

_He chuckles and stands up to give me a hand. Shell, I feel like I'm fifty years old. My joints pop and crunch as Leo pulls me to my feet with my arm. It's hard to believe that I'm only seventeen. Where's my- oh, Leo has it in his other hand. I guess he picked it up when I wasn't looking. Or paying attention. He keeps a tight grip on my arm even after I'm standing. What? Does he think I'm going to fall over or something? "You can let go of me now, Leo."_

_He's regarding me with that thoughtful expression again. Now what? "Let's go over to April's so you can lay down for a bit. You look awful." Gee thanks Leo. I love you too. He taps my bo against my shell. "You should have sent Mikey after me."_

"_As if Mikey could sit still and not whine all night about being tired and cold." He opens his mouth as if to say something and I cut him off just as quick. "And Raph was spitting fire after you left so don't you even suggest having him come after you next time."_

_He smiles as he let's go of my arm and hands over my bo. "Thanks for being here for me, Don. I don't know what I would do with out you."-_

My heart is throbbing painfully in my chest as I try to drag in a desperate gasp of air.

_-It's a dream. This is all just a bad dream. I'm going to wake up any moment and realize that this never happened. This is just a dream. "Don? Are you alright?"_

_I have to actually force myself to not pinch my arm. What if this really isn't a dream? "Could you please repeat that?"_

_Leo smiles gently at me. "I want you to take care of Mikey and Raph while I'm training."_

_Good, I thought there was something wrong with my hearing. At least I know what I heard was right. "I thought you said that…" Leo actually wants me in charge while he's gone. That's an honor. To know that he feels I can take care of them on my own is a great testament to what he sees in my skill. It's also one of the stupidest things I think I've ever heard come out of his mouth. "And what, pray tell, is to prevent Raph from tearing me to shreds in one of his temper tantrums and to prevent Mikey from driving me insane by being Mikey?"_

_I can tell by that smirk on his face that I'm not going to like his response. "You're the resident genius, Don. I'm sure you'll figure out something." _

_I hate it when I'm right. I take a deep breath and relax before turning away from my workbench and looking at Leo who's leaning causally against the wall next to the door. I can't help but just stare at him for a moment. It's hard to believe I'm not going to see him again for a whole year after tomorrow. "Leo, I'm honored that you've chosen me to take over your place but let's face the facts here. I'm not cut out to be a leader." He frowns and opens his mouth to say something but I just cut him off. "And before you can even argue with me I'll give you three good reasons why."_

"_Don-"_

"_Number One: Raph is older than me so he's going to take offense to the fact that I was place in charge and not him."_

"_Don I-"_

"_Number Two: I may have a brilliant idea from time to time but I take to long to deliberate an action for it to be affective in combat." _

"_Listen to m-"_

"_Number Three: I value my sanity very much and refuse to be driven over the edge but the yelling matches and insanity that this coming year will surely bring if I let you talk me into being the temporary leader until you return."_

"_Donatello!" He grabs my shoulders stopping me from my pacing in front of my workbench. I honestly hadn't realized I had started to do that. "Clam down and listen to me." I open my mouth to say something only to find his hand clapped firmly over my mouth preventing me from saying anything. He's giving me that look that means 'do as I say because I'm pulling the leadership card'. He can be such a jerk sometimes. "Now listen to me, I asked you to take care of them. I did not say anything about leading them. I know Raph's not going to like the fact that you are going to be given authority over him. I know Mikey' going to try and drive you up the wall but I know that you can handle it. With me gone you're going to be the only one left who's going to have the sense to keep those two in one piece."_

_Gee, no pressure or anything. I look down at the hand covering my mouth and back at him. He gets the point and takes the hand off my mouth so I can speak again and maybe talk some sense into him. "There is no way I can call the shots in a fight. I'm not ab-" _

_He holds his hand up to stop me. Usually when Leo asks for silence like this it's for an important reason. "After I leave tomorrow there's going to be a new rule around here Don. No fighting. Period." _

"_Like Raph is going to follow that order." It slips out of my mouth before I can even think of it. It's not like I was lying or anything. It's completely true. Trying to stop Raph from fighting was like seeing the Shredder give up his crime syndicate. It just didn't happen._

_Leo smiling again, that can't be good. "I know. That's why I fully expect you to monitor his actions and make sure he doesn't get himself so deep in trouble that he won't be able to get out of it again."_

"_And how am I supposes to do this? I'm not exactly going to be his favorite turtle during the next year." I can tell by the tone of his voice that Leo is going to do and say just about anything to get me to agree with his crazy plan. Okay, so it's not as much crazy as it is the truth. I'm going to seriously look into cloning myself so that I can keep an eye on both of them at the same time. _

"_Drug him, slip a tracker under his shell where he won't notice it, and then just patch him up when he stumbles through the front door at three in the morning."_

_I should have known that Leo was going to have this all figured out. He always has a plan or six that he can use at any given moment. That just happens to be one of them. "And how do you suggest I deal with Mikey? Dope him up on Ritalin and hope for the best?" At least that drags a smile out of him. Leo was the one who originally started the joke about Mikey's hyperactivity. However, after Mikey freaked about being 'sick' and got me to give him a very good going over, I had to give him a clean bill of health. There's nothing wrong with Mikey, he's just a naturally bouncy and flamboyant turtle. _

"_You know how he is. Giving him a project to keep him entertained for hours and then you can kick back and relax." This is going to be the worst year of my life. "Don't worry Don. You'll be fine. I trust you to keep an eye on them." I'm glad at least one of us believes that. With a sigh Leo steps closer and hugs me close. "Take care of them Don."_

_I wrap my arms around his shell as best I can and squeeze just as tight as he is. "I'm going to miss you."_

"_Me to. I'm going to miss all of you so much. I'll be back. I'll come back as soon as my training is complete."_

"_Swear you'll come back Leo. Don't you dare leave me alone for these two any longer then you have to." _

"_I swear on my honor that I'll be back before you know it Don."-_

Shell, why did I have to remember him now? My chest hurts, my heart is pounding, and it seems like I've forgotten how to breathe. I'm trying to force air into my lungs but I'm shivering so hard that I can't seem to make any of my muscles work right. I've got to get help. There's something very wrong with me. Other than the obvious. I try to lift my hand so I can knock the clock off the nightstand. If Leo hears something crash, he'll be back in here in a flash. Come on… you can do it… I feel like I'm going to faint… probably from the lack of oxygen… a little more… just… a… little… m-more… I can't… reach it…

My hand hitting the nightstand inches from the clock is the last thing I remember.


	21. Chapter 21:A Picture vs A Thousand Words

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_A special thanks goes out to _Quoth the Raven_ who took the time to help me with a slight case of writers block. THANK YOU!!!! _

Chapter Twenty One: A Picture vs A Thousand Words

"Mbc. Whdl wb jlw va."

Wh-wha?

"Mbcchl. Yhxl pcm sihcl."

Mikey?

"Nbdl bc, sellar ilpm. Hw'x apxw cbbc."

I'm awake?

"Nbel bc. H fcbt rbv'yl ptpfl Mbc. Hw'x whdl wb jlw va!"

I guess shortly after I fainted I started to breath again.

"Mbbbcccchhhll," stop shaking me Mikey. My head hurts enough as it is. "H dpml wibxl nbkkll npfl dvkkhcx rbv ehfl."

My eyes blink open slowly and I find myself face down in my pillow. I thought I was dying last night. It sure as shell felt like it. My chest had just seized up and I couldn't breathe while my heart was pounding. I let my eyes close slowly. I may have had another 'episode' but other than feeling sore and tired I don't feel that bad. I'm a little hungry, which is probably the reason why Mikey's in here. How late it is anyways?

"Vaxhl Mphxhlx!" Ugh! I bounced a good foot of my bed. I lift my head and glare at my soon to be dead little brother who's sitting next to my hip with this ridiculously huge Cheshire cat grin on his face. His grin starts to falter while I continue to glare at him. Wow, I can almost see the gears in his head begin to turn as he realizes how stupid it was to jump on my bed like that.

"If you value your life," I say quietly while Mikey starts to fidget on the covers. "I would run if I was you."

How can Mikey scream ten times higher than his voice? It truly is a mystery. However I can't deny it's effectiveness in disorienting whoever it is he's trying to get away from. By the time I've semi recovered from that shrill sound, Mikey is already out the door and running down the hall by the sounds of it. I let my head flop back onto the pillow. It really would take to much energy to chase him down. It's not like he would learn never to do it again. I know he's going to be back in here jumping on my bed to get me up tomorrow.

I'm just starting to doze off again when I feel the side of the bed dip. Now who's here? "Mbc? Nbdl bc. Jlw va. Rbv ipul wb lpw xbdlwhdl wbmpr." I don't want to get up April. Just go away and let me sleep. Sleep is much higher on my priority list than food is right now. "Mbcpwleeb, lhwily rbv nbdl mbtcxwphyx pcm lpw xbdlwihcj by H'ee ipul Ypai mypj rbv mbtc wilyl." Why do I have the distinct impression that April just threatened me with something?

I turn my head off to the side enough so I can see her sitting on the edge of my bed watching me expectantly. Please don't make me get up. I want to spend the next week in bed **asleep**. Mmm… I'd guess that judging by how she's looking at me right now that I had better get out of bed before she really does something drastic. When it's pertaining to someone's health, drastic and April is a very good reason to do what the doctor ordered. I can't even count on mine and my brothers' hands how many times she has tied me to the bed because I refused to rest. And now that I really do need sleep she wants me to get up. That figures.

She turns to face the door and I can tell by the look on her face that she's going to call Raph in here to drag me out of bed. Look I'm getting up. You don't have to have Raph haul me downstairs. He enjoys doing that way to much sometimes, especially when he's been sent to 'retrieve' Mikey. I wait for April to stand up before throwing the covers off my legs and getting up. Shell, it's chilly in here. I can't help but shiver slightly and immediately catch the frown on April's face. Uh oh…

She catches on of my wrists in her hand and places her other hand on my forehead. She's still frowning. "What's wrong April?" For as long as I have known her I know that when April's frowning like that it can only mean one thing. I'm sick and running a fever judging on how her hand still hasn't left my forehead. I look up at her hand as best I can without moving my head too much. April might think I'm trying to escape the maternal side of her that wants to put me back to bed and make me eat chicken noodle soup until I explode. She's done it before and I know she would do it again in a heartbeat. "I'm running a fever aren't I?"

She steps off to the side and tilts my head enough so that the light spilling in from the living room hits me full in the face. Darn that's bright. I'm surprised Mikey didn't turn the lights on in my room when he was trying to get me up. April suddenly steps away but keeps a gentle grip on my wrist forcing me to follow her. Great, now what? "Ypai," she calls as she leads me to the stairs. "Ibt tpx Mbc kllehcj tilc rbv elkw ihd epxw chjiw?"

"Il xlldlm khcl ovw H mhmc'w pxf ihd." How can Raph sound angry even though I know he's not?

"Elb? Ibt tpx il tilc rbv wbbf ihd opnf wb olm?" We descend the staircase side by side and she still hasn't let go of my wrist. Okay, April, seriously. I may look like something Klunk dragged in but considering I haven't even lost my balance yet I don't think I'm going to fall over anytime soon. I didn't even think it was possible to her to be so motherly and overly concerned, usually that's what Leo does.

"Il xlldlm nulyer whylm ovw H mhmc'w wihcf pcrwihcj bk hw olnpvxl bk wil epwl ibvy. Tir? Hx xbdlwihcj tybcj thwi ihd?" And now cue Leo's mother-henning because he just got his first good look at me. I didn't know Leo's jaw could hit the floor like that. "Tipw ipaalclm wb ihd?!" And now Leo is going to jump out of his chair and gives me a look that it's all my fault even though it isn't.

"I'm blaming you for this Leo," I mumble as April makes me sit in a chair. Wow, I didn't realize how tired I would be just walking down the staircase. I hope some coffee will wake me up a little better than being hauled out of my bed at some ungodly hour of the morni- afternoon? Great. I slept away most of the day. Just great.

"H wihcf il dhjiw ipul ipm pcbwily xlhqvyl pw xbdl abhcw olwtllc tilc Elb avw ihd opnf wb olm pcm tilc Dhflr tlcw wb tpfl ihd va." April's standing behind my chair keeping a firm grip on my shoulder. I sigh and rub at my eyes with one hand while gentle pushing it away. If I haven't fainted yet April I doubt I'm going to faint sitting in a chair, lay off.

"Jvlxx Mbc'x xwhee gvxw px dvni bk pc vc-dbychcj alyxbc px il tpx olkbyl pee wihx." Whatever, Casey. I want coffee. I go to get up only to have April push me back down in the chair. I give her a look that makes her flinch slightly and she releases my shoulder instantly. Good now I can go get some coffee even if I do feel like a complete heel. Still, I don't function as the kind, caring, considerate turtle that everyone knows me as until after I've had at least six cups of coffee. I'll apologize to April after I feel more like a turtle.

"Elw dl ipcmel ihd," Leo scoots his chair closer to me and gently takes my arm before I can get up.

I give Leo the same glare I gave April. "Just because you're my brother doesn't mean you can prevent me from getting coffee anymore than she does." I try to get up again and like a suspected, Leo just tightens his grip. "Leo, I'm not joking around. I will shove one of your swords where you really won't want it if you keep this up!" Alright, so that was a little more violent than I think I've ever been, especially towards my brothers, but I will go through with it if I don't get my coffee in the next three minutes!

Um? What is th- Coffee! And… oh shell… Mikey made those coffee cake muffins that I love. He's is so spoiling me right now. "Thanks Mikey. You're a life saver." Mainly for Leo who I was getting really close to impaling. I dig into the food and coffee he set in front of me with something that could only be described as gusto. Though I think a more powerful word is in order.

"H wibvjiw Mbc ipm jbbm wpoel dpcclyx."

"Cbw tilc Dhflr dpflx wibxl nbkkll nvanpflx." Raph, Casey, whatever you just said I'm going to ignore because these things are heaven. I wonder how many of these I can get Mikey to give me before I'm cut off. Probably only six because I'm the only one who eats them and unless he made a double batch then the recipe is only for six. Darn.

It's not until I'm on my fifth muffin and third cup of coffee that I noticed Leo watching everything I do with that intent look on his face. There are times I have to admit that Leo would be one of the best scientists ever if I could just get him out of the dojo for a few hours. His powers of observation astound me. I really need to convince him to use them more than to find clues on a crime scene. "You know staring is considered rude Leo."

Okay, now he's narrowing his eyes at me. What did I do? I tilt my head to the side and furrow my brow in confusion. After seeing me ask 'what' he points to me, the side of his head and then to the center of his chest. Wait. What? Seeing me give him a double take he repeats the action again with that soft reassuring smile he gets on his face when he knows one of us is confused. How the shell did Leo know I know who he is?

Oh duh. Leo is Leo after all and I was just praising his powers of observation. He probably has noticed how I've started acting more and more like myself as I remember everyone around me. But what tipped him off that I knew who he was? Coffee. We're always fighting about me drinking too much coffee. He's always trying to prevent me from drinking it and drink tea instead and there has been a few times I've been caffeine deprived enough to threaten him with bodily harm. Luckily he always backed down before I really could come to blows with him. Mostly it's lucky for me. If Leo can wipe my shell in a sparing mach when I'm awake than he could most defiantly beat me when I'm still mostly asleep.

"Rb, Elb? Tipw'x va thwi Mbc? Mhm rbv vaxlw ihd by xbdlwihcj?" I slowly nod my head.

"Cb, Ypai. H pxflm ihd hk il fcbtx tib H pd pcm il'x xprhcj il mblx." I can tell when Leo excited and happy about something. It's in his tone of voice the most. It takes this odd tone that reminds me of a five year old who thinks they have outwitted an adult. You can also see it in his eyes when he's excited or very angry. It's like they glint with an inner light that makes a shiver run up your spine because it's just so creepy. Comforting but creepy. The gentle restraining grip on my arm has also changed becoming firmer but more supportive instead of restricted.

The entire room has gone eerily silent. I guess whatever Leo had said attracted their attention. "Dpfl xvyl il pcwvpeer fcbtx tib rbv pyl Elo," I didn't know April's voice could get any softer than that. It sounds like a bomb going off in the room though. I wonder what would happened if I dropped a pin. "Il dpr gvxw ylcbjchql rbv ovw cbw pnwvpeer fcbt rbv."

Leo points to himself, shrugs his shoulders in confusion and then points to me. Great, the one thing that has been plaguing me since I remembered Raph is coming back to haunt me. How am I supposes to tell Leo who he is if I don't have any form of communication where I can express the letters or the sounds? There's got to be a way. I don't even want to try and figure out all the signs I would have to make to tell Leo who he is to me. And even then he might not understand everything correctly. He might mistake something that I say, and then start believing that I think he's working for the Shredder and will start avoiding me just so I'll stay in the lair. That would be just my luck too.

Everyone is still waiting for me to say something. It's like they're posing or something except they need to breathe more often. I didn't think it was possible to make Casey shut up for more then a minute. I should go and get a picture of that for April. It's not everyday Casey is ready to have a picture taken. Wait…

That's it!

I hold up my finger to Leo and then get out of the chair and head for the bookshelf in the computer nook. I can be such an idiot sometimes. If I had thought of this sooner this would have been a whole lot easier to let people know that I'm getting better and remembering them. Okay, there's that encyclopedia set that April bought for me last Christmas. And the sixth book from the right should be 'K', 'L' and about half of the 'M' section. I flip through the pages trying not to pay attention to the words that are flying by at incredible speeds because that would probably give me a headache. Ah! Here we go. Taking the book back over to where Leo is still standing next to the table, I give it to him pointing at the picture that takes up the bottom right corner of the left page.

It's time to really see if a picture is worth a thousand words.

I watch Leo as he looks at the picture I pointed out. To anyone else, it's a picture of a very famous painting that resides in the Louvre in Paris, France. To Leonardo it's more than just that. It's by his namesake after all. Leo's hand lands heavily on my shoulder bring me out of my thoughts and I can tell by the look on his face that he's proud of me. He got it. He actually got it. I had hoped it would work. I couldn't think of any other way to tell Leo who he was and judging by his reaction it was the best way I could have picked. "Xb tipw'x thwi wil obbf, Elb?"

Oops. As Mikey has so kindly brought back to my attention, the rest of the family has been watching this whole interaction between Leo and I. I hate being the center of attention like this. Who would have guessed that I have a slight case of stage fright? "Mbc xibtlm dl p ahnwvyl bk wil Dbcp Ehxp," he still has the happily proud expression on his face even as he turns to look at everyone else. "Hw'x bcl bk Elbcpymb mp Uhcnh'x dbzw kpdbvx tbyfx."

Stunned is what I think would best describe everyone's faces as they look at me. Didn't I just admit to having stage fright? I rub at a nonexistence itch on my cheek with one finger and look away from the six pairs of eyes trying to pop out of their sockets. "What? How else was I suppose to tell him who he is?"

"Mb rbv wihcf il fcbtx tib wil ylxw bk vx pyl?"

I don't get a chance to really think of what Raph could have said before I have a bouncing turtle in my face carrying on about something. I didn't even see Mikey move. How did he get across the room so fast? "Tipw pobvw dl Mbcchl?! Tipw pobvw dl?! Rbv ipul wb fcbt tib H pd! H'd wil nvwl bcl! Lvlyrbcl yldldolyx tib wil nvwl bcl hx! Nbdl bc Mbcchl! Tib pd H?! Ivi?! Ivi?!" Mikey can jump a foot in the air when standing still? Who the shell let him eat Trix with extra sugar again?! I though we all decided that he was ever going to have those things again. "Mbbbccchhhhhllll! Mbc'w wlee dl rbv bcer yldldolrlm Elo! Rbv'ul jbw wb yldldoly dl wbb!"

Okay Mikey's beginning to hit an all knew level of annoying and I swear if he hits that high octave again I'm going to slip muscle relaxants into his dinner. Let's see him make a clamor all doped up on that stuff. What the shell is he all bouncy about anyways? Oh, duh. Mikey can be such an attention hog. He doesn't want to be left out and, since I've remembered Leo, he's expecting me to have remembered him as well. Maybe I should not 'tell' him and teach him a lesson about always assuming whatever he wants will happen but… he is my little brother and…

I'm such a sucker.

Leo put the book back on the table and I lift it up, flipping closer towards the back of the book as I go. Almost the- here we go. The Sistine Chapel. I doubt Mikey's going to know who painted this without asking for some assistance. He really needs to look into art history more, especially if he's going to write and illustrate his own book one day. All the different styles that he could learn would really help expand his knowledge of the arts beyond that of comic books and the occasional young adult novel. Yup, just like I thought he's passing the book to Leo. "Hw'x wil Xhxwhcl Nipale, Dhflr. Bcl bk Dhnilepcjleb'x tbyfx."

AAHH!! Mikey torpedo!!! Oof! Ow. Normally I hate it when Mikey tackles me to the ground in a bear hug but this time I'll make an exception. I can't tell what he's mumbling about but I can hear that slight hitch in his voice that tells me he's close to crying. Oh Mikey… I gently rub his shell as he tries to crush me to himself. "It's okay, Mikey. I'm here."

It takes a few minutes for Mikey to calm down enough to get off me. Leo gives me a hand off the floor with that same smile on his face. That's not going to be leaving anytime soon I just know it. As I'm righted I can't help but notice that Mikey's on cloud nine and is bouncing all over the room excited about me remembering him if I would hazard a guess. Everyone seems to be on some level of celebration or discussing logistics of what just happened. I can't help but notice that there is only one person that seems a little upset about my announcement.

Raphael.

It's easy to tell when Raph's upset because of his stance and his body language. His arms are crossed in a protective gesture and his feet are spread slightly further apart than considered comfortable for standing. It's kind of a cross between his normal stand-off pose and one of his fighting stances. Usually when I see Raph standing like that I avoid him because he'll just be looking for a chance to fight with someone and blow off steam but this time I know that he's just feeling left out. He's not in the mood to fight with anyone, he just wants to be left alone so that he can wallow in sadness.

I'll fix that. I walk back over to the bookcase and count over from where the 'L' through 'M' book was till I get to the 'Q' and 'R' book. Let's see… no… no… okay, here we go, 'The School of Athens', one of my favorite paintings done by Raphael. I take the book over to Raph and tap him on the shoulder. He gives me this less than impressed look before noticing its me and that I'm giving him a book now too. "Don't worry, Raph, I know who you are too."

Aaahh! I twist around for a minute but I can't help but smile when I hear Raph laughing at me. Okay, so he's probably laughing at my puny attempts at getting out of this headlock but at least he's in a better mood than before. Come on… Oh great, now he's give me a nuggie. Shell, Raph! Urk… Ow. I stumble back away from him after I finally pull my head free. "That wasn't nice Raph!" Though my words are harsh I can't seem to put any bite into them and I know that I have a stupid grin on my face. I've finally got through to all of them that I've remembered them.

Well, almost everyone.

Now that my brothers know that I know who they are I have two best friends and a father to reassure. I know that the only two calendars in the lair is the one I have on my computer and that… ummm… interesting one that Raph got from Casey awhile back. I don't think it would be a good one to tell April who she is either and I doubt that Leo and Master Splinter could prevent Raph from killing me. I don't even think he knows I know about it and I'll keep it that way to keep my head in place.

I tap April's shoulder and she stops talking to a still happy looking Leo to look at me. I draw a rectangle in the air before and then cut it in half. With my finger I draw out a seven by five grid pattern on the lower portion of the rectangle. April Fool's Day was on a Tuesday this year. Starting on the second block in I count out the squares that represent each of the thirty days in April. Then I go to the top of my calendar and count up to four on my fingers. I'm so glad that I have enough fingers for that.

My meaning must have got across to April. I won't admit it to anyone just in case it ever got back to Casey but I love it when April gives me a hug. And it has nothing to do with certain aspect of her anatomy despite what anyone else might think. When one of my brothers gives me a hug, it's strong and I feel protected. Well, Mikey's hugs feel like I'm being strangled around the chest by an octopus but I still feel safe and protected. When April gives me a hug it's gentler, as if she could protect me through sheer will power rather than through sheer strength. It probably has to do with not having any form of mother figure in my life till I met April and I would never be caught dead calling her that but… the caring and compassion in her hugs could never be overshadowed by the loyalty and devotion I feel when my brothers hug me.

She let's go of me and I head back to my work bench. Now where did I put that laptop case? I'm so glad that Casey's nickname is easy to 'sign'. Of course I guess I could have just as easily used Raph's favorite nicknames of 'bonehead' and 'knucklehead' but I don't think Casey would get that right away. Raph and Mikey would but Casey wouldn't. Maybe I should sign those to him. No, than they would think that I don't know who he was. At least not completely and that wouldn't be fair to Casey. Oh there's that messenger bag.

I slide the computer out and leave it setting on the table amongst the books. I wouldn't want it to get damaged and at least everyone knows not to mess with anything on this table. Well, April does but she usually waits until I'm somewhere nearby or she asks first and I know she would never hurt my laptop. I walk over and toss the case to Casey who catches it and than looks at it for a moment. Come on, Casey, you're not that much of a bonehead. I know that can even go through that thick skull of yours.

Oops. I duck, dodging the one armed grab that was probably going to pull me down into a headlock much like Raph has already done. I'm so glad that he's predictable. I spin under his arm as he tries to grab me and come up along side him. He has that befuddled look on his face as I punch him in the shoulder. "Come on, Casey. You know you can't pull the same move on a ninja twice."

Now comes the easiest person to tell I remember them. I can feel everyone's eyes on my as walk over to the table and kneel down so I can look up at it. I can just feel the anticipation in the room. It's like that feeling everyone has when whatever sporting event we've been roped into watching with Casey comes down to the last few seconds and both teams are neck and neck. Let's see… Here we go. Shell… come out you stupid… I reach up on top of the table and pull down a fork. This should do it. There we go. Got it.

Leaving the fork on the table, I walk over to Master Splinter and offer him the piece of wood I just pried off of the bottom of the table. I can see in his eyes that he's proud that I've been able to remember everyone so far and I can tell that he's even happier that I've remembered him too. I still wait until he takes the small splinter of wood from my hand before I bow to him. Even if he's my father he's still my Master. And he's my father. I come out of my bow and the first thing I do is fall to my knees and hug him. He holds me just as close. Dad…

Splinter's fur and robes muffle the sounds of everyone's voice but I know that they've come to an important decision. When I let go of Splinter –who has a smile that matches Leo's- Mikey taps me on the shoulder. He points to me, the side of his head and than back to me. They want to make sure that my memory is enacted and that I remember myself as well as them. I nod my head at Mikey before turning back to the bookcase. I should give them definite proof.

Okay, third book in. Unlike my brothers who were named after painters, Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi was best known for his sculptors. The equestrian monument of Gattamelata at Padua is one of my favorites but it isn't one of his best known works. The free standing Bronzed cast David is much more famous and notable. It's said that Donatello's portrayal of David was what inspired Michelangelo's David but I've never found anything that really proves that. I think it's more of a rumor than anything. But it would still be cool if it did happen that it was true. I give the encyclopedia to April because she's closer and I can tell that's she's over joy by her tone of voice. "Hw'x Mbcpwleeb'x Mpuhm."

She's hardly said that before Mikey gives a whoop and jumps on me knocking both of us into Raph. All three of us hit the floor and I get the barest glimpse of Leo standing over us smiling. Casey's voice suddenly yells, "AHJAHEL!" and I get the barest glimpse of Casey rocketing towards us with a very surprised looking Leo being knocked down with him. OW! Now I have another brother and Casey on top of me and I can hear April and Sensei laughing at us as we lay there in a pile of arms, legs and shells. And somehow… I wouldn't want this any other way.

…

I can't believe I had forgotten how much my family loves to celebrate when something big has happened. Of course, to my family, Raph getting up with his first alarm clock is a huge deal most of the time because we don't have to listen to Mikey's terrified scream after he's gone to wake Raph up after the tenth time he's hit the snooze. At least I have a tendency of getting up in the morning after I've hit the snooze button for the third time and I don't make a huge show of it like some older brothers who will remain un-named. But I guess I can't place all the blame on Raph either, Mikey really doesn't have to scream like that.

I'm trying to catch my breath after all the festivities. It was weird, everyone was happy and congratulating me but the mood shifted and wasn't half as happy when they realized I couldn't say anything to them. No one could get those over joy looks off their faces but they were still upset that I wasn't one hundred percent. I sigh and give the ceiling a mild glare. Really this blows. My family and I have reunited so to speak but still no one has a clue of what I'm saying.

Then April caught me rubbing at one of my temples and next thing I knew Mikey had made me admit that I had a headache. Of course, that meant a lot of unneeded worry that I was going to collapse and have a seizure. No matter what I tried to tell them they wouldn't listen and I was forced to drink some tea before I was put to bed. They needed to pay attention to me. Then they would have found out that the 'seizures' were actually me remembering them and not a typical seizure.

I can't complain about being put to bed though. I needed the sleep. I'm just starting to feel like a regular turtle again and according to the clock I've been dozing for almost five- closer to six hours. I would have been able to actually sleep if I didn't have concerned brothers sticking their heads in here every hour. I can't blame them, I would be doing the exact same thing if any of them had been laid up like I am, and it was nice to wake up to them.

I woke one time to find Mikey curled up against my shell on top the blankets. He had been holding me tightly, mumbling something about a car accident in his dreams. I really couldn't get a good look at him and every time I tried to roll over he'd whimper and hold me closer. I stopped after the second try and just threw part of the blankets over him to help keep him warm. As far as I'm concerned, if Mikey wanted to cuddle with me than he could do so as much as he wanted. I missed having my little brother coming to me looking for comfort, though in that situation I was really sure if I was comforting Mikey or the other way around.

Later, I woke to find Mikey gone and instead found Raphael perched on the edge of my bed just watching me sleep. Had it been anyone else I would have jumped out of my shell but I lost count of how many times I've woken in the middle of the night to find Raph next to the bed hurt or worried that he really wrecked the bike again. I'm use to late night visits from Raph, though this time it was mid afternoon and as I tried to get up to find out what had happened he just pushed me back into the bed. He watched me for a moment before heaving a heavy sigh and than laying down next to me on the bed, throwing and arm over my shell and huffing into the pillow. The look in his eyes clearly said if I said anything about this to anyone he was going to throttle me.

I wasn't surprised to find Raph gone when I woke up next time or to find Leo sitting next to the bed meditating. I really don't understand how he can meditate for hours on end like that, especially sitting on a cold, hard, concrete surface like that. "Leo?" my voice was still heavy with sleep and I really didn't think I had been loud enough to attract Leo's attention but his eyes snapped open and he looked at me calmly. I had yawned and than moved over on the bed patting it with my hand. With a smile Leo got up and sat on the side of the bed with his legs curled up under him, ready to meditate again. I curled around him and shut my eyes, smiling when I felt him put a hand on my shoulder and gently squeeze it.

I love my brothers.

However, I still can't talk and there's only so much signing that I can do to explain to them what happened to me and what's still happening to me. There's no way for me to tell if I still haven't remembered everything and I know that the next thing they're going to ask me is if I know who did this to me. There is no way in shell my brothers are going to let the Foot get away with this. Leo probably only did a 'scouting' mission so to speak when he went after them on his own. See how strong they were, trying to find out where they took me and where exactly Karai was. I doubt he had to think much about that last one, Mikey and I figured that he had been keeping tabs on the Foot's new leader for awhile now.

If that's the case, Leo probably confronted her when he was on his own. Was he interrupted in his revenge before he could do much damage? No. That guy with Saka said something about Karai not knowing about this. In his confrontation with Karai, Leo and her most likely talked and they realized that it was a faction of the Foot that did this to them. I can't imagine Karai took that very well. I'm so glad that I never pissed Karai off to the point where I saw her mad. That can't be a pretty sight.

And that would mean that no one but me knows where Saka and his faction are.

Joy.

And again I'm landed with the problem that I can't talk to anyone and there's no way they'll let me show them. I'll be lucky to get out of the lair at all in the next week. Or month. Or year. Everyone's going to be so over protective of me I'm going to feel like I'm suffocating soon or something. I'm surprised that I don't feel like that now. Other than sleeping -and sometimes not even then- one of my family members has been with me.

Do I really want to show/tell them where Saka is? There's no telling what he would do to one of the guys if he caught them. Would he do the same thing to them that he did to me? Would he do some other experiment? Would he just out right kill them? I sigh and close my eyes. I have no idea what that guy would do to them. I don't even want to think of what he would do to them. I… I… I can't just send them after that guy with out knowing what'll happen. I don't want them to end up like me or worst. I couldn't imagine any of my brothers stripped of their memories like I was. I don't even want to think of that.

I sigh again and open my eyes to stare at the drawing board. Even if I don't tell them where Saka is it would still be nice to talk to them. I wish being able to discuss things with them, reassure them that I'm alright and -most importantly- be able to yell at them when they pick me up. Just because I'm the lightest doesn't mean I like to be hauled around like a toy or something. It's embarrassing to say the least.

How can I relearn how to talk again when I'm not speaking or hearing any form of regular conversation? I came to the conclusion long ago that this excuse of a language that my brain has come up with is not based on any known language. It's more like a random jumble of wards that have been mixed and matched together. As far as I can tell, sentence structure and pronunciation are the same so it's just the letters themselves that are being confused. It doesn't make it any easier to figure anything out knowing that though. I have nothing to base anything on so there's no way to check to see if I figured it out right. I don't even have an idea of where I could begin. This would be so much easier if I was literate or something…

Maybe I am literate… Well, not in the regular sense but I do still know how to spell. I just don't know what the letters stand for but if they're jumbled like I think they are than I would just have to see a word that I know means something and than match the letters together and solve it like a code. It might just work. All I need is a word wrote out in English so I can match it to gibberish and than I can test this. Now where am I going to get a word that I know the spelling of? It's not like I can write it out myself and there's no telling what anyone else would write if I asked them to write something down. If I could get them to copy down their names that would be the easiest to work with but how would I mime that to them?

Actually… I throw the blankets off my legs and walk over to the filing cabinet. The top three doors I use to keep ideas and research organized but the bottom two are filled with medical files for my family. Let's see… I was right. I wrote out their full names on the header of the files regarding them. Taking each of the five named folders from the drawer I head for my drafting board. I'm going to have to put them back after I can read so I don't put them in the wrong place. I set them on the board, shift the blueprints for the bike to the other end of the table and grab a fresh piece of paper.

Okay, now this could take awhile. I kept the files in alphabetical order so that means this first folder belong to me. I carefully transfer the gibberish onto the sheet of paper before writing out my full name below it in gibberish. They look so different but I won't be able to detect any form of pattern or translation if I don't get more of an idea of what English looks like. Okay, next is Leo's folder… Now Master Splinter's… Mikey's… and finally Raph's… Okay now let's see if I can make some sense of this.

Mmmm… there's a reoccurring theme with the 'a's in our names. They're all 'p's in gibberish. Raphael's name has both an 'a' and a 'p' in it so they're swapped. A=P and vice versa. I write those in its own column on the sheet of paper before me with enough room in between to write more letters that are sure to come and box them in our names so I can keep track on which letters are which. Okay… now the 'o's and the 'b's also seem to be in the same boat but without a 'b' in anyone's name it's hard to check that one. I'll go with it and change it later if need be. O=B and B=O are added to the list. 'D' and 'm' are next… 'N' and 'c'… 'L' and 'e'… 'W' and 't'… 'R' and 'y'… 'H' and 'I'… "X' and 's'… and finally 'g' and 'j'. I still don't know what 'f', 'k', 'q', 'u', 'v' and 'z' stand for but right now I have the rest of the alphabet written out on the side of the paper. Now that I have an idea of what is what I should test this out and see if someone can understand what I'm writing. It's not as good as talking but at least this is a start.

As I study the list of words in front of me to memorize it, I start to notice a pattern in it. If I start the alphabet at 'p' and than go backwards through it all the letters click into place. Instead of jumbling the alphabet my mind just shifted the alphabet back by sixteen letters to make a new one. I grab a note pad and using the code I just deciphered write out 'can you read this?' in English. In what I hope is the correct form of English anyways. I won't know for sure if this is the correct format until someone reads it. I look at the writing on my pad and than back at the code on the board. I hope this is right, 'npc rbv ylpm wihx?' looks so different compared to umm… I shake my head. Come on, Don, stop doubting yourself and just go find someone to test this on.

I open my door and step out of my room into the generalized chaos that is my home. Mikey's trying to touch the ceiling again. I've told him to be careful when he's doing that, with repetitive hits of that force lading on the half pipe it will eventually break and knowing Mikey he'll be on it when it happens. He's so cleaning up that mess. Raph and Casey are in front of the television yelling at it so there has to be some form of sporting event on right now. At least neither of them have anything heavy to bludgeon the TV with except each other and the last time they tried that the broke most of the furniture in the living room fighting over who was going through the TV. Again, I'm not picking that up. April is still up to her nose in books. It looks like Master Splinter is meditating or resting in his room. I can just barely make out the candles flickering from under the door. How he can meditate in all this noise I don't know… Well, he has had almost seventeen years of practice so yeah…

Leo's seems to be the only one not in the middle of something right now. Well, he's drinking his tea and judging by that neutral look on his face I caught him before he was able to get into the dojo for the next hour. Yeah, it is almost four so Leo is getting ready for his extra hour of self training he does everyday. No one can be perfect but Leo's getting pretty close with all the practice he's putting in all the time.

I can't help but feel nervous as I hop over the railing and land in the kitchen. Leo doesn't even seem the least bit startled that I'm up. He probably knew the moment I threw the covers off my legs. I need to learn how he's learned to tell where each of us is every second of the day. I might actually get some work done in my lab if I knew when everyone was previously engaged elsewhere and I could mess with some of my more dangerous experiments without having to worry about brothers barging into the room and throwing a proverbial and actual monkey wrench into things.

"Ilr Mbc. Kllehcj pcr olwwly?" Leo's not even looking at me when he's talking but I can tell he's addressing me because he's voice didn't rise above the din in the room to yell at anyone else. I shuffle my feet for a moment trying to build up the courage to give Leo the pad of paper. Shell, this is nuts. Just give him the pad… but what if he can't read it? I… Before I can think about it again and maybe finally talk myself out of this entire endeavor, I hand the pad of paper over to a confused looking Leo. He takes it looking at me concerned before taking a sip of tea and reading over what I wrote. That might not be a good idea…

I didn't know that the 'Enlightened One's training included tea snorting.

I think Leo's broken Mikey's record on distance.

He's out of the chair before I can blink and grabs my shoulder. I blink in confusion when he talks. I usually am able to at least make out what Leo's saying even if I can't understand him but whatever he says comes out in such a rush that I can't even follow what he just said. He's talking as fast as Mikey does when he's eaten way too much sugar. Whatever he said also seems to have caught everyone else's attention too. Now I really do feel nervous. A gentle shake on my arm brings my attention back to Leo. "Mbc, mb rbv vcmlyxwpcm dl?"

Why do I have a bad feeling that I've raised his hopes only now to just dash them? I take the pad of paper from his hand and write out, _"I don't understand speech Leo. Write it out."_ I guess I can safely say that Leo understood what I had written. That alphabet that I figured out was the correct one. I hand the pad back to him and his eyes glance over it before he frowns and scribbles something out.

"_So you can understand what we write but not what we say?"_ I wish I knew how to talk this would be so much faster.

Wait if I want speed than I should use a computer. I can type faster than I can write. Beckoning Leo to follow me I head for the table and the laptop that I had left there earlier. My master computer has more processing power but I have a feeling everyone is going to be standing over my shoulder watching what I'm typing so the more room the less claustrophobic I'll feel.

"Leb, tipw'x jbhcj bc whwi Mbcchl? Tir tlyl rbv pxfhcj ihd hk il vcmlrxwbbm rbv?"

"Mbc'x khjvylm bvw ibt wb tyhwl Ypai." I ignore what Raph and Leo are talking about as I perch on a stool and flip the laptop open. I should have thought about using a keyboard earlier. I learned how to type without looking at a keyboard when I was ten and last I checked all keyboards have the same formatting. Oh well, live and learn I guess.

Using the F5 button, I brought up the blank word pad document. I programmed into the computer ages ago and right now I'm glad that I did. There's no telling how long it would have taken me to navigate through all the menus to get to it. I type into the computer as I feel Leo look over my shoulder, _"My mind is processing the alphabet as if 'A' was 'P' and then 'O' is 'B' and so on. Think of it as if you have two alphabets below each other but one starts below the letter 'P' and goes from there."_

I take my hands away fro the keyboard and lean to the side as Leo types something back to me. As it was with the writing it takes me a moment to translate it but it seems that everything falls together correctly. _"Don, do you know what they gave you? If we knew what it was then we could figure out a way to fix it."_

By 'we' he means April. "Mbc'x poel wb wpef wb vx?" Casey says and I glance over to find Raph and him coming over to look at the computer too. April is already standing behind me and judging by the crash and the following yelp Mikey's going to be over here in a moment too. I'm definitely glad that I chose to sit here and not in the computer nook.

I type, _"I never got a look at the bottles of whatever he injected me with. As far as I can tell he gave me an amnesia causing drug with a few added side drugs to help keep me… placid."_ I really don't know how else to say that. I had to have been given some form of sedative judging by how I felt when I first woke up. And the few memories I have from during my time in the lab just seems to confirm that. I had to have been drugged out of my mind on more than one occasion.

"Pxf ihd pobvw wil xlhqvylx Elb. Xll hk il ipx pc hmlp pobvw tipw'x npvxhcj wild." Leo's typing before April's even finished talking. _"What about the seizures? Do you have an idea about what's causing those and how to prevent them?"_

As soon as Leo's fingers have left the keyboard mine's are back on it and flying. Finally, I can reassure them about this. _"This is going to sound weird but the seizures have actually been a good thing. Every time I've fallen down, fainted, collapsed or had a seizure I was actually remembering something. My mind couldn't handle the sudden rush of information I got when I remembered something so it 'overload' and caused me to go down."_

Leo takes control of the keyboard again. _"So you remembered something else last night? What was it?"_

"_I remembered who you were."_ The response is almost immediate as Leo squeezes my shoulder which his hand has been resting on when he wasn't typing. I can't help but reassure him again even though I don't know if this is true or not. _"Don't worry. I was in no danger of dying. I was just a little worn out."_

Leo leans over the keyboard again. _"Do you know why your breathing became depressed and why you started to slip into cardiac arrest?"_

So I was right and I did have a heart attack after I remembered April. No wonder they were panicked when I woke up this morning. _"I think it was just was from remembering too much in a short time period without the adequate time in between to rest from it."_

"Khcm bvw tib mhm wihx wb ihd, Elb. Pcm tilyl tl npc khcm ihd."

Judging by Raph's face, he's looking for a fight. _"Who did this to you Donnie? Do you know where he is?"_ I knew this was coming. Raph's looking for revenge and by the look on Leo and Mikey's face they're looking for it too. Should I tell them where to find Saka? I don't want them to get hurt…

My hands begin to fly over the keyboard without much thought. _"The doctor that did this to me was called 'Doctor Saka'. Whether that is his alias or his real name I don't know. Unfortunately, when I was taken to the lab they took me too, I wasn't able to see anything to tell me where I was."_

I can tell by the way Raph pounded the table that he's just a little upset by what I just said. "H'ee xll hk H npc khcm pcrwihcj pobvw p Mbnwby Xpfp," April mumbles before stepping away heading for the larger computer. I know she's going to see if she can find anything about Saka but I doubt she'll pull up anything. The more I think of it the more I think that his name is just an alias. At least I hope she doesn't find anything.

I think Doctor Saka and I are due for a little talk.


	22. Chapter 22: A Horrible Truth

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Okay, after this chapter there is only two more to go. Yes, I know, it's sad. I'm going to miss this story. Hopefully the end of this chapter will make up for it!_

Chapter Twenty Two: A Horrible Truth

I'm starting to think that stupidity runs in the family and there are four solid pieces of evidence to back up my claim. First, it's Mikey always trying to defy fate and physics to make us laugh by provoking Raph or the oven. Second, is Raph always getting into more than he bargained for in fights and ends up limping -and in a few rare and horrific cases crawling- home battered and broken. Thirdly is Leo with his most recent attempt at taking down the Foot single handedly again. And last but not least, me with this stupid, over protective decision to canvas the lab where I had been made to forget my life from some nefarious reason or another.

Yup, this is a very, very dumb idea.

The only good thing is that the Foot is still in the house. There are patrols around that building, leaving a less than a thirty second gap in between each patrol with an outer ring about one blocks from the building and an inner ring about half a block from the building. It'll be hard to squeak in there with out attracting any unwanted attention. Difficult but doable. It's just of matter of timing everything right and sticking to the shadows and I should be able to get in there without anyone seeing me.

I'm perch underneath the gargoyle on the church's steeple as I watch the patrols through a pair of binoculars. Though my shell is pressed back against a solid wall and the gargoyle above me makes it hard to reach me I still wish I had some kind of back up. I can't see anything coming up behind me or come in from he sides. It would be so easy to ambush me right now. I take the binoculars away from my eyes enough to do a sweep of he building above me. All I'm doing now is making myself paranoid. No one even knows I'm up here and the Foot would never expect me to come back to the place where they stripped me of my memory. This would be the last place they would expect me to be.

Hiding in plain sight was always my strong suit.

I go back to watching the patrols to get the timing down. I can't say that I'm completely without back up. If I get in over my head then I can call for help. It's just going to take help a little while to get here. At least I have that whole not being able to talk thing covered. The emergency button –or panic button as Mikey has a habit of calling it- will be able to spend them flying out of bed and looking for me. Also, to prevent a repeat occurrence from what happened in the junkyard, I added a special feature to my watch. By pressing the side button and then smashing the face, it will activate my brothers' phones. The added benefit of using the watch over the phone is that my locate will continually be broadcasted no matter had wet, damaged or shocked the watch could possible get. I'm going to have to install this on everyone's phones…

I have enough tech gear to allow me to sneak in a much more heavily guard base than this to. My duffle is a comforting weight against my thigh. Everything from grappling hooks to my PDA to a card key hacker is shoved in there. Oh yeah… how could I forget the explosives? Raphael would be overjoyed if he knew how much fire power I have tucked away in here. He always did like watching things blow up. I really think that's the only reason he watches some of the technical shows with me is because of the explosions. This is going to be one explosion that's going to be hard to miss.

Okay… enough waiting around.

It's time I got this show on the road.

I tuck the binoculars back into my duffle and then readjust the strap so that the bag in resting up on my shell next to my bo. It's far enough back now that it wouldn't get in the way while I'm traveling over the rooftops to get to Saka's lab. I double check to make sure that the suko spikes are still secure on my hands before twisting around and pulling myself back up onto the rooftop with the gargoyles legs. "Thanks," I whisper to my silent guardian as I scramble past. I run around the outer lip of the rooftop, dodging the gargoyles that are placed at regular intervals on it. When I reach the far side of the roof I pause. None of the patrols will see me jumped down from here.

Now this is where the fun begins.

Mikey likes to whoop, carry on and generally be very un-ninja like when he's sprinting across the rooftops. He says it adds to the thrill of the adrenaline rush he gets when he's running and bouncing and jumping all over the place. I agree with Raph when he says that Mikey is a show off. Of course Raph's one to talk, he's been known to hoot and holler too, especially if Mikey gets him going or he and Casey are calling each other names as they run around at night. Leo's even had a habit of throwing out the occasional taunt or yelling at Mikey that it's suppose to be a silent run. That, of course, gets Raph going and than the rest of the evening's practice run is trashed as they stand around arguing despite the obscenities that the people they woke up are yelling out their windows. One time the two of them had the cops called because of all the noise they were making. Now that was funny even if the cops never so much as found them and only heard them, Mikey still makes fun of them for that.

I, on the other hand, prefer being silent in our rooftop runs. There is just something about the way the air flows past that's so… peaceful. Calming. Like there is nothing in the world that can stop you and nothing that can hurt you. Then hit the ground and realize how stupid it was to just close your eyes when you are in free fall. I've only done that once and that had been anything but fun and I had made a promise to myself and my family never to be push/fall off a building again if I could help it. I was lucky that there was a dumpster there that cushioned my fall. I had been younger then and now I have much more experience traveling by rooftops.

As I jump off into space, I've already picked up where I'm going to land and three different ways that I can possible get there. I'm going to stick to route 'B'. The wind whistles past and for a brief moment I feel that calming peacefulness I get when I'm falling before I twist myself over and prepare to grab the flag pole that's jutting out of the side of the building. There, perfect catch. Now flip myself around and build up momentum… one… two… three… let go! Keep curled in a ball to remove excess wind resistant… uncurl and roll to vanquish some of the forward momentum before getting back up to my feet. Text book job if I do say so myself.

Now onto the lab.

I stick to the shadows, hiding myself from anyone who maybe looking for me. Keep buildings and any other large objects on my left. The patrols will be coming from that way too so hopefully I'll have the time needed to hide before they spot me. I really am starting to wish that I had brought my brothers with me instead of leaving them behind. Even hidden in the shadows I feel exposed. If I had hair on the back of my neck it would be standing on end. It's almost as if someone is watching me but I know that there is no one there.

I'm behind a maintenance shed when I hear it. The barest whisper of feet moving over the rooftop reaches my ears or I may have just sensed them. Four ninjas -one of the patrols- is coming around the building. I angle myself so that I'm in the deeper part of the shadow and stay silent as they approach. One comes around the right side of the building and one around the left. Two bound off the smaller roof and land mere inches from me but I hold completely still. Oh shell… one just glanced over his shoulder at me but then turns right back around. He's either overly tired or he's really not looking that well. He should have at least been able to tell that there was something messing up the symmetry of the brick work but he just turns and keeps going with his patrol. Why am I complaining about his lack of details? I should be glad he's not watching paying attention.

I wait until the patrol has moved to the next rooftop before quickly slinking away from my hiding place and closer to the lab. I need to make sure that the first ring patrols don't see me and I have to avoid the inner ring as well. This is really going to be a hassle. I move slower and more cautiously then before, making sure to keep myself as out of sight as possible. If I'm spotted I'll have no hope in trying to knock them out before they alert someone. The next patrol would come upon us fighting if anything. No… If I get caught I'm going to have to run and hope to shell that my emergency pager works. That way even if they do manage to drag me back to the lab my brothers will come looking for me and hopefully they won't end up captured as well.

Another patrol is coming. I crouch down behind the fan unit I'm hiding behind so that I'm more hidden by the shad- Unf! My knee hits the ground hard as I overbalance slightly causing my knee to slam down. It'll ache and I might have a bruise later but that's not my concern. Even thought there was barely any noise behind it those Foot ninjas would have still noticed it. I can hear them moving closer to investigate that sound. Crud! Okay, think, Donnie… how do you get out of this one.

A small stone near my hand catches my attention and before I've even really thought this crazy plan through, I toss the stone over the edge of the building and into the alley below. Is this even going to work or did I just make it ten times easier to find me? I hear the thunk of the stone hitting a metal trash can closely followed by the yelp of a stray cat. Sorry for disturbing your meal cat but I needed a way out of this mess. It doesn't surprise me that all four ninjas go to peer over the side of the roof to see what had disturbed the cat. I'm glad that they can be so predictable sometimes.

I half walk half crawl over to the edge of the building before quietly slipping over it using the suko spikes to help me scale down the wall till I find a rather spacious window ledge that still allows me to see much of the lab's rooftop. Hmmm… there doesn't seem to be any kind of security on it but I've learned to ever believe your eyes all the time. I pull my duffle back a round in front to of me and it only takes me a moment to pull my night vision goggles free. Okay, let's flip through the spectrums and see if I can- Yup. The rooftop has been crisscrossed when motion detectors and heat sensors. The heat sensor probably won't pick me up but the motion sensors will. I guess the rooftop access way is off limits. Let's see if I can find a wireless feed and hack into the buildings security system so that I can shut those things off.

Wait a second…

…

I don't believe this.

Someone left a window open and there are no sensors on it.

I smell a trap.

Still… there are no forms of security devices and I think it's just a bathroom. Why is it always the bathroom? I crawl over to another window ledge so I have a better look inside the room. It's just a small average bathroom. The door is shut so there's no telling where it goes but it's still a way in. I adjust my watch so it's easier to smash the face then easily bound over the short distance to the wall on the side of the lab using the suko spikes to catch the small grooves in the wall before I fall into the alley below. That would be an embarrassing way to get caught again. I crawl up and peer over the ledge of the bathroom. Nothing. Coast is clear. I climb higher up the wall and swing my legs inside making sure that my duffle and bo don't catch on the window casing.

OH SHELL! This was a mistake. A really big mistake. Shell, what did this guy eat? One of Mikey's burrito surprises? It sure smells like it. Gross, I can even taste it. Note to self: Make sure to carry a small oxygen mask from now on just in case. I got to get out of here before I puke. At least now I know why the window was open.

I put my ear against the door and listen while I hold my breath. Nothing. Opening the door silently I look one way and then the next. Still nothing. I step into the hallway and tuck my suko spikes back into my duffle. I take a deep breath. The air is much cleaner out here. Now let's see if I can find that lab again and get a few answers to what happened to me during my stay here last time. Hmmm… Let's try this way.

This place is like a maze. It doesn't help that half the doors are locked too. If I remember right I need to find a staircase or elevator. The lab was on the second highest floor so I need to go one floor down. I wish there were one of those little fire escape plans around here or one of the maps in the malls that say 'you are here' in red bold lettering. Than I would at least have an idea of the layout of this floor. A name for each room would be helpful too but I suppose that would be asking too much.

Hey, the elevator. I don't want to attract any unwanted attention by calling it to this floor. Taking a suriken in each hand I pry the doors open and then jump through onto the cabling. Now I just have to shimmy down to the elevator car and then I should be able to open the emergency escape on the roof and then go through those doors and onto finding that damn lab. Okay, I'm on the car now. Where's the- Ah, here it is.

GAH! The whole car shifts and then starts to move down the shaft. Crud… I should have figured someone would be using the elevator tonight. I just have to hope that they don't go up to the top floor. The elevator dings as it passes each of the four floors down to ground level. This is going to take forever. The doors open with a quiet whoosh in the middle of someone's sentence, "-bvcm hw or cbt."

Hey, that sounds like Saka. I press my ear to the roof of the elevator and focus past the sounds of the doors that shut behind him. "H mbc'w vcmlyxwpcm tipw hx dpfhcj wihx xhdpel wpxf xb mhkkhnvew. Rbv ipymer ipm pcr wybvoel oyhcj hw wb dl hc wil khyxw aepnl. Tir xibvem cbt ol pcr mhkklylcw?" He's definitely mad at who ever he's talking with.

The elevator begins to rise and the sounds of the motor nearly blocks out the quiet response. "Wil wvywel'x oybwilyx ipul dbxw ehfler xlnylwlm hw ptpr hc wilhy xwybcjibem. Tl ipul cb tpr bk khcmhcj ihd cbt. Tbvem rbv ehfl vx wb oyhcj wil Ylm opcmlm nylpwvyl hcxwlpm?" That sounds a lot like the ninja whose hand I bit back when I was first brought here. He must be a supervisor or have some kind of authority over the other ninjas. Looks like I found both the bosses at the same time.

"Cb. H ipul avw wb dvni whdl pcm lkkbyw hcwb aylapyhcj wil khyxw bcl. Xbdl bk wil nildhnpex hc hwx oebbm swylpd thee wpfl tllfx wb pyyhul kybd wil mlpelyx. H mbc'w ipul whdl kby wipw pcm clhwily mb rbv." It almost sounds like Saka is threatening that guy with something. "Dhxwylxx Fpyph hx obvcm wb cbwhnl wihs ehwwel balypwhbc xbbc. Tl npc hee pkkbym wb ipul pcr dbrl mleprx. Tl dvxw khcm wil avyael bcl pcm khchxi wil lsalyhdlcw cb dpwwly wil nbxwx. H thee cbw ipul dr ehkl'x tbyf mlxwybrlm olkbyl hw hx lulc khchxilm."

The elevator chimes as it reaches the floor that they wanted. Hey, I'm back to where I started. At least now I don't have to climb up the side of the shaft. I wait until I hear the doors slid close again before I open the hatch and hop down into the elevator, closing the hatch behind me. Carefully I open the doors as I did before, praying that no one would see me do this. Good, coast is still clear. The loud tapping of shoes striking the ground clue me into which way Saka went. When looking for the lab of a mad scientist it's always a good idea to follow the mad scientist.

I stay close to the wall as I slip along it to the corner that I look around to see where Saka is going. He and his silent companion are heading further down the hallway and go into a room still discussing something. I bet Saka is mad because the Foot can't find me. Man, if only they though to look right under their noses they would have me. I better get out of here before someone does notices me.

As I scan the hallway I recognize a large double door that almost looks like one of those in a hospital. The one in all the dramas that the end up wheeling patients through to get to the ER. I would know that door anywhere. I've just found the lab. I scan the hall before me and glance over at the hall I'm leaving before moving over the empty space and standing next to the door. I don't hear anything. I open the door enough to see that the lab is dark before sneaking into the empty room. Now it's time to see what I can find out about my stay here.

The last time I was here the lights were on this lab gave me the heebiejeebies. Now with the lights off this place really looks like it belongs in an old black and white horror flick. I take a moment standing next to the door waiting for my eyes to adjust to the dark space. The last thing I want is for someone to come to investigate why the lights are on in the lab. Alright, let's see what I can find.

I'll give Doctor Saka one thing, he certainly as one shell of a lab. There's everything from genome equipment to an MRI machine. How the shell did he get an MRI machine in here? I bet anything that he benefactors 'acquired' it for him. He has a x-ray machine, enough medical equipment to fill his own hospital, and enough drugs to make a pharmacy look jealous. Hmm… there are five bottles that are simply labeled 'A' through 'E'. I bet these are the chemicals that stumped April when she was trying to break down what was in my bloodstream. I dig around in my duffle, I know I brou- there it is. I pull out a small hard plastic case that is lined with a special padding the molds to the shape of whatever is placed in it. All five of these bottles just barely fit in here. I close the case and lock the clasps before tucking it away in my duffle again. I'll look into those more when I get home.

Hey a notebook. A notebook is always a good thing to find. If Saka is like every other scientist in history then he's bound to have kept detailed notes on his research. I reach into my duffle again and pull out a small pen light. Whoa, that's bright after being in the dark for awhile. Even if it is on its lowest setting I still feel like I've been blinded. Okay… I can't help but snicker. The entire last page is filled with him ranting and raving about how the Foot can't find me. This is great.

I flip back to the beginning of the notebook and scan over the pages. This would be so much easier if I could actually read what he wrote and not have to translate everything. Hmm… he keeps calling me 'Purple' in his notes and how I would be the best choice for his experiment but he doesn't say why. Red? Does he mean Raph? Sure looks like it. If the Foot couldn't capture me they were going to corner and take down Raph. Shell, I guess I should be grateful that they got me instead. If Raph had attacked the family like I had when they had first brought me home then it would have been one hard fight to get him to back down again. I doubt he would have retreated and hid in the bathroom after nearly breaking his fist against the wall.

I flip further into the notebook, scan over each page looking for anything that will clue me into why Saka did this to me. Judging by all the notes he took, he practically dissected me during my stay here. There are a lot of notes on different drugs and how they affected me. It looks like he settled on using a highly potent animal tranquilizer to keep me 'calm' as he put it. By the looks of the amounts and the frequency that he was injecting me it would be more accurate to say knocked out completely. I wouldn't have known it even if he had cut me wide open without any anesthetics. That's probably why I was so sick when I woke up in that metal room, I was overdosed on tranquilizers. Wait, there was enough tranquilizer in my system it would have been impossible for me to wake up when I did. How did wake up? Here we go. A paragraph titled: Predicted Project End Results. I don't necessarily like being thought of as a project but this should tell me at least what this madman was trying to achieve.

…

Shell… that's… that's impossible. I flip through the notebook and realize with mounting horror how close he came to actually doing this. It's all here in his notes. It's just because of one side affect that he wasn't able to complete he experiment. He came so close too… I can't believe I'm going to say this but he has found the best way of destroying my family. If it hadn't been for my escape and that side affect than he would have done it.

What better way to destroy a group of highly trained ninja warriors then to send one of their own clan members out to destroy them.


	23. Chapter 23: Escaping the Lab Again

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_So the count down begins to the final chapter… _

_Just to let everyone know there are several fight scenes and some death coming up (you didn't think Saka would be getting out of this alive now did you?) so you have been warned. I tried not to make anything graphic so there should be no issues with the rating._

Chapter Twenty Three: Escaping the Lab Again

Saka was trying to brainwash me.

He was trying to brainwash me into killing my own family.

I feel like I'm going to puke.

Of course this just gives me an even better reason to kick Saka's butt from here to Mexico after he's circumnavigated the globe. Twice! Out of all the traps that have ever been set for us, this one has to be the worst. Using me to kill my family? I don't think I'm going to be the one pulling Raph off Saka, more like the other way around. If he didn't think a bo was considered lethal weapon than he has another thing coming.

I force myself to take a breath and read over more of his notes. Letting myself be consumed by anger isn't going to help shed anymore light on this. I need to keep a calm mind until I return with some back up then I can go to town when the odds are a little more in my favor. I focus again on the notebook and read what Saka was planning rather than fuming over it.

According to this, Saka did a lot of research into our individual character traits trying to find the right one to do this too using film reels and reports to base his findings on. I didn't even know that the Foot had film reels of us. Leo's going to want to know more about those. Hmm… this guy is definitely a scientist. Judging by the information in his notebook he's been planning this experiment for at least a couple years. He has enough information about us to make it look more like a character study from a novel rather than notes about us.

The section about me has been circled with a red line. I wonder what he wrote about me… Genius… pacifist… weak. Weak? What the shell?! Alright that's it. It's on Saka! Just wait till I get my hands on you. Ah… I'm going to kill him! Alright, calm down. Let's get through breezing over this then I can go and open up a can of hurt on him.

There are several lists on the next page. It looks like he was comparing the four of us. This must have been how he chose to brainwash me. Why wouldn't he do it to Raph? Or Leo? If he had wanted to kill us off then why didn't he pick one of them? They're better fighters then I am and if it ever came down to a four way brawl to the death I would probably be the first to go because I wouldn't –and couldn't- hurt my brothers.

Wait, that's it! Doctor Saka went for me because no one would expect for me to try to kill everyone. I despise fighting so if I suddenly took a sword and tried to stabbed one of them they would be shocked by my sudden aggressiveness that they wouldn't be able to react fast enough. I would have the element of surprise in such a fight. At least now that explains why I was so aggressive when I couldn't remember anyone. Saka must have begun placing subliminal messages in my brain to try and kill my brothers on sight. Talk about a nutcase.

His tactic is also a double edged sword. With me little more then a blood thirsty lunatic, my family would be hard pressed to figure out how to help me. April is overloaded as it is. I can't imagine how frazzled she would be if I tried to kill everyone who got with in ten feet of me. Judging by my reaction to needles I would have been a bear trying to get a blood sample from. It was bad enough and I didn't even want to kill them then. I just wanted to get away.

What this page doesn't explain is why Saka didn't finish the experiment? I flip around in the note book a little more. Hmm… no… no… Now this looks promising. A small side note that says side effect. My speech impairment is a side effect? Why is tha- Oh. The 'killer' side of me was suppose to be activated when I hear the words 'home' and 'safe' followed by seeing Master Splinter.

This man has no limits.

I can't wait to break his nose!

At least now I know why I was moved to that metal room and sedated. He was trying to come up with a way to cancel out the speech impairment. Until he came up with a way to do that I was useless to him as a weapon. Then I woke up and escaped so that put his work even further behind. Is that what he and his Foot buddy were talking about in the elevator? I can't imagine he could get much further in his plan without me. He probably has had the Foot scoured the city for me. I'm so glad that the Lair is so well hidden.

Wait… does that mean I'm 'programmed' already?

Uh oh…

I shove the notebook and the penlight back into my duffle. Shell, this is bad. Saka may have figured out how to clear up my speech problem and if he did then he might send me back to the lair to kill them. The sooner I get out of here the better. I rearrange the duffle up onto my shell as I head for the doors, checking to make sure my watch is ready for sending out an emergency signal as soon as possible. If worst comes to worst I'm just going to hope that the guys can get here before Saka does too much damage to me. I shouldn't have slipped out of the lair alone. I should have gotten someone to come with me. I guess I can't cry over spilled milk. The bathroom window should still be open. From there I can either dodge the patrols again or head for a manh-

Ah…

I force myself to pull my hands away from my eyes. I don't know who just came into the room and turned on the lights but now is not a good time to be blinded. If someone's seen me than this whole facility is going to be crawling with Foot Ninjas out to catch me. I blink my eyes rapidly to see who walked into the room. Maybe if I'm quick enough I can prevent whoever from sounding the alarm. Okay now I can se- I'm not sure if I should be grateful for this little twist or worried about what's going to happen next. It's hard to tell who is more surprised by this little meeting, Saka or myself.

I don't have time to be surprised. I've got to get out of here. "Xpcjhp, jlw ihd!" Shell, now I got a problem on my hands. That Foot leader that's been acting as Saka's body guard just pushed past him and into the room. I guess I'm going to have to stop him before I'll be able to get to Saka. Shell, I hope Saka doesn't sound the general alarm. I could really have a problem on my hands if he did that. As if I didn't have a problem on my hands already. Mr. Ninja doesn't look like he's interested in talking this fight over. Well, I might usually take the more defensive approach in a fight but if I don't do something immediately I'll lose the element of surprise that I have right now and have the entire base up in arms. It's time to take this fight to them and take them down.

A quick snap kick on a pile of books perched on the edge of the table send them flying at Mr. Ninja's face. He blocks them, slapping them away from his face as if they were little more than a fly rather than molecular biology references. At least that is what I think that the titles on them said. Motion off to my left cause me to look right in time to duck a beaker aimed at my face. There's no telling what Saka may have put in that. Better not take any chance on anything he throws.

I quickly block the punch that was coming at my face. Mr. Ninja isn't ready to give up though I doubt that a couple of books would have been able to stop him. I jump backwards to avoid another punch and land lightly on the table behind me. Reaching back I grab my bo and pull it forward, forcing him to dodge the end that nearly smacked him in the face. Don't think that you're getting away that easily. I twist my wrist, swinging on end of the bo down at his head. I can hear his grunt as he puts his arm up to take the force of the hit on his arm instead of his head. I doubt I would have been able to do much more than knock him senseless for a moment or two. There wasn't enough force behind that strike to do any kind of really damage. Unfortunately.

I roll to the right, ignoring the books and papers I just rolled over as three small thing flew overhead. If I hadn't moved those would have hit me in the shoulder and side. They're probably some kind of dart loaded with a tranquilizer most likely. I need to take Saka out of this fight before he hits me with one of those. I come up and out of the roll, flipping up and over the far side of the table. There, with that between me and Mr. Ninja I'll get a second to get that dart gun away from Saka. I wonder where he got that anyways. It looks to small to have been bought. I guess he must have customized it himself. I'm all most sorry I have to break it.

My hand ducks into the side of my belt and one quick flick later Saka is crying out in pain as two surikens embed themselves into the side of his gun and the back of his hand. Take that insane Doctor. Just wait till I'm done with Mr. Ninja, then you really will be hollering. Hey, what was th- Oof! Good job ninja. Instead of coming over or around the table, you attacked from under the table and gave one shell of a kick to my left side. Luckily this table was over here to help catch me from falling over. I duck as I see Mr. Ninja spinning around with a round house kick from the corner of my eye. Hey! Doesn't he know that some of those test tubes cost several hundred dollars a piece? Huh? I jump behind Mr. Ninja as Saka throws another beaker of something at me. This is getting old. It's time to put him down for good.

I stick my bo between Mr. Ninjas legs and twist it, tripping him as he tried to turn back towards me. I jump over him as he struggles to his feet. Saka doesn't look to happy that I'm charging him. In fact, I'd say he was terrified of me. Heh, good. I'll give him a reason to fear me. No one tries to get me to kill my family without having some kind of collateral damage. Saka's reaching back for something on the table next to him but can't seem to take his eyes off me. If he's so intent on reaching for something with that arm than I'll make him wish he hadn't reach for whatever.

I'm not big on violence. I don't like hurting people but I have to admit as I feel his forearm break from the force of my bo I can't help but feel happy. There's a present for what you did to me Saka. I hope to break a couple more bones before I'm through. A soft sound suddenly catches my attention as Saka falls to the ground before me clutching at his arm. What was tha-

Unh! I stagger forward only to feel something catch my ankles and send me cartwheeling on the floor. Mr. Ninja must have hit me really hard in the back and than Saka just had to let me trip over his legs before I could catch my balance. I roll back up onto my feet and twist around only to stagger again as my bo nearly trips me. Just whose side are you on, anyways? I need to find out where Saka and Mr. N- Uhf! Okay, Mr. Ninja just kicked me in the chest with enough force to knock all the breath out of my lungs. I feel my bo slip from my grasp as my right side slams into another table and I can't help but cry out. Shell, that hurt! My ribs haven't had time to heal fully. I must've cracked them this time or bruised them again. I almost fall to my knees on the floor except someone grabs my right hand and I feel a heavy leather strap wrapped over it and tightened.

NO!!!

I jump up and I feel the edge of my shell hit Mr. Ninja in the chest with some impressive force. He stumbles back a step which is just enough for me to back kick him in the lower stomach and send him to the ground with a crash. Now I've got to get this strap off me. I'm reaching for the release only to feel something heavy jump on my shoulders and push my face into the thin padding on the examination table. "Xpcghp! Jlw wil xlmpwhul bkk wil mlxf!" Get off me! You should have pinned my other hand Saka! I reach back, grab the collar of his lab coat and throw him off my shell and on the other side of the table. I reach for the strap again only to turn and elbow Mr. Ninja in the face. I gotta get my hand free! I reach for the strap again only to have Saka grab my wrist and force it to the bedding. Shell! "Xpcghp! Cbt!" Mr. Ninja is getting ready to inject me with something and with both my wrist pinned I'm as good as stuck. I didn't realize Saka was so strong. It's time to give him something else to think about so I can get some help.

I lunge forward and bite Saka right on the wrist. He let's go with a cry as he jumps backwards. Even though I would love to gloat at him about that I have better things to do with my time. Like getting the shell out of here! I turn as best I can in my position and smash the back of my fist and wrist into the side of Mr. Ninja's jaw. I can't help but smile as some blood that has soaked through the mask fly away from his jaw as he twists away. That felt so good. What felt even better was the faint crack that I felt more than heard as my watch face shattered inwards with the hit. The Calvary has been notified and will soon be on the way.

Not that I'm going to wait around and play the damsel in distress. I turn back to- what?! A hand on my wrist pulls me backwards so that my shell in on the table and a strap is quickly placed over it. Crud! I gotta get my wrist away from Saka before he tightens that. Before I can deal with him my shoulder is shoved down and I look up in time to see Mr. Ninja about to stab me in the side of the neck with a needle. Shell! I usually fight with honor but desperate times call for desperate measures. Sorry about this Master Splinter but I'm pretty sure you'll forgive me. My knee comes up with such force and speed that Mr. Ninja didn't even have time to dodge or try and block it. Dodging it probably wouldn't have been in his best interests. There was enough power in the hit that I might have broken his hand. Too bad he didn't try to block it.

He starts to fall to the ground clutching at his groin only to get a face full of foot as I use the table for some added leverage. He stumbles backwards but somehow manages to keep his feet as he staggers. I can't help but snicker at him. Being able to stumble, hold your groin and try not to have your eyes bug out so much that it rips your mask has got to be an art form. Urk! Saka's back for more. He has an arm wrapped around my neck and is keeping my head forced back and make it difficult enough to breath that I really don't want to do anything else but focusing on breathing. Get off my shell, already! I take as deep a breath as I can and pull my legs up so far that I'm nearly bent double over the table. Saka makes this interesting noise as my calves end up on either side of his neck. I feel his grip loosen slightly and I pull my legs forward, yanking him over the table and flying right into Mr. Ninja's side. Both of them fall to the ground with a satisfying and resounding crash. Take that!

Now I just have the little issue of the cuffs over my wrists. I hope the guy's get here soon. I'd rather not be turned into a Trojan horse so to speak and sent home with them. What are these things made of? I can't get them to budge. Of course that could be because I really haven't been lifting weights as often as Raph so how could I simply tear the straps off? I need a lot more muscle mass for something like that and even then I would risk the chance of pulling several muscle groups and possibly damaging some tendons.

A slight noise catches my attention and I look to find Saka helping Mr. Ninja to his feet despite the fact that the poor guy couldn't stand up well. I glare at them, trying to appear intimidating despite the fact that I'm pinned. If I can just keep them from drugging me until my brothers get here then I'll be all set. I'm able to shift around enough so it looks more like I'm causally leaning against the table rather then being pinned to it. I slide my feet a little further apart, that's going to be my saving grace if those two try and inject something into me. I know how to fight without using my hands which is obviously what Saka and Mr. Ninja have found out in the past few minutes.

Saka is just watching me as I brace for the fight I know is coming. "Wyver p dpjchkhnlew xalnhdlc. Hw pedbxw oylpfx dr ilpyw wb fcbt wipw tl pyl jbhcj wb mlxwybr hw pcm hwx fhc." Saka's muttering under his breath. I wonder if it is possible for him to become even more insane than he already is.

"Wyvxw dl," I guess it's true that the pitch of a male voice changes to a higher octave when hit really hard in the balls. "Wilxl wihcjx thee ol dvni lpxhly wb xwvmr pkwly wilr pyl mlpm. Wilr'yl wbb mvni bk p ipcmkve tilc wilr'yl swhee pehul."

Saka just nods his head at whatever Mr. Ninja just said. "Kybd tipw H'ul xllc hc wil apxw klt dhcvwlx, H pjyll thwi rbv. Khyxw elw'x avw wihx bcl wb xella xb H npc khjvyl bvw tipw hx tybcj thwi hwx ubnpehqpwhbc pcm xallni vcmlyxwpcmhcj." He's grabbing another syringe off one of the tables and begins to approach me. Come on, jerk, I'll give you two good reasons why you should leave me and my family alone forever.

Oh shell, don't stop him! Shell for brains! "Mbc'w paaybpni hw. Hw'x tphwhcj kby rbv wb jlw nebxl lcbvji xb il npc xwyhfl rbv. Hw'ee ol lpxhly wb myvj hw kybd p mhxwpcnl." I really wish Mr. Ninja hadn't stopped him.

"Ulyr tlee," I wonder where Saka is going. After crossing the room he digs around in a desk drawer before coming back with- Crud! It's another one of those small, hand-held dart guns. I grit my teeth as he loads it and takes aim. With my hands pinned there is no way I can hope to dodge that shot. "Wil bwilyx dvxw bl hc wil pylp. Tl thee ipul wb khchxi aylapyhcj ihd zvhnker olkbyl wilr pyyhul." This is not my lucky day. I watch as he lifts the gun and takes aim. I wish I knew where he was going to try to hit me. I might be able to get out of the way then. I have just enough give in these straps to be able to move a little so if he was aiming for my shoulder I could dodge it. I doubt that I would be able to dodge the next dart though. I don't know if I even want to look.

_Pfft!_

_Ting!_

What the shell? Saka fired the dart but what did it hit? It wasn't me I know that. I guess I should open my eyes and find out. A katana! Sweet, Leo and Calvary have arrived! It was a little to fast though… I would have expected it to have taken them longer. And why isn't Raph saying/growling about something? I doubt that the three of them would have separated if they had the locator leading right towards me. I look to the swords wielder as the blade is pulled back to their side and-

Crud…

Now I'm in trouble.

An old saying about a frying pan and a fire comes to mind right about now.

Karai is looking anything but pleased and judging by the way she's holding that sword someone's blood is going to be spilled tonight. I just hope it's not mine. The barest whips of movement catch at my attention. More Foot Ninjas. They don't seem to be on Saka and Mr. Ninja's side though. Judging by the way those two are cowering away from them, I'd say that they know that they are in trouble.

The entire room is dead calm, like the calm before a massive front is about to move in bring with it enough server weather that my brothers' and I can hear it rage from down in the sewer's. I can't help but swallow as my eyes dart about the room. Anytime now guys… I could really use a rescue right about now. I don't even dare to move my wrist least someone feels the need to be me out of commission. Saka seems to be getting some of his composure back. At least he's able to stand up straight and talk with only a minor stutter in his speech, "D-Dhxwylxx Fpy-"

"LCBVJI!!!" Whoa, I didn't know Karai could be that loud. For having such a small frame she certainly has a very loud voice. "H pd cbw ilyl wb ehxwlc wb rbvy lscvxlx. Rbv fcbt tipw rbv ipul wbcl pcm wil avchsidlcw kby svni."

"Dhxwylxx Fpyph. Hk rbv tbvem ovw ilpy vx bvw wil-" You really should know better than to piss her off Mr. Ninja.

"H peylpmr fcbt bk rbvy lsalyhdlcw! Bvw wihx hx pc vcibcbrpoel mllm wipw wil Kbbw sipee ipul cb apyw bkk. Wil wvywelx pyl wb mhl or bvy oepmlx -thwi ibcby- pcm cbw lpni bwilyx. Kbynhcj bcl wb fhee wilhy kpdher hx cbw ibt wil Kbbw balypwlm vcmly dr Kpwily'x yvel pcm H xipee cbw ipul hw ipaalc vcmly dhcl." I can tell by the way Mr. Ninja steps towards her that something bad is about to happen. You really shouldn't say anything…

"Hw hx elpdlyxiha ehfl wipw wipw pedbxw mlxwybrlm wihx nepc!"

Karai is across the room before I can blink and runs him right through the stomach with her katana. At least that's what I guess happened. Karai's body is between me and him. Judging by how she came to a stop and he jerked and is now slowly falling to the floor I think that that's a good assumption. Plus the fact that Saka just fell on his rear shrieking like a girl is another good indication. "Culuy salpf wipw tpr pobvw dr Kpwily." I can just barely hear her speak as she pulls the sword back and let's Mr. Ninja fall to the floor. Definitely ran him through with her sword. I can see the blood running down the blade from here. She turns to Saka who begins blabbering like an idiot and trying to crawl away from her. A glance up at one of her ninjas and Saka shrieks again as that ninja grabs him and forces him to stay still. Oh great… Now she's looking over her shoulder at me.

It only takes her several quick steps and suddenly she is standing maybe a foot from me with blade to my neck. Great, now she kills me for being here. "Mbcpwleeb, mb rbv vcmlyxwpcm dl?" Is she talking to me? "Mbcpwleeb?" And now she's frowning again. I start to swallow but stop when I realize how much of a bad idea that is. I can feel the blade dig deeper into my skin. Better play it safe and just stay still. "Tilyl hx ihx ob?" One of her ninjas walks over and picks my bo off of the floor from where it had partially rolled underneath on of the table in the room. "Kyll ihd." I jerk when I feel two sets of hands working away at the straps pinning me to the table. Part of me wants to knock the sword away from Karai's hands and take on everyone in the room but thankfully my more logical side steps in and forces me to stay still and calm. After all, I do have one very sharp sword pressing into my throat.

"Mbcpwleeb," Karai says and than simply points at the door. Um… What about it? I so glad I kept that comment in my head and didn't say it out loud. She probably would have killed me just because she could. Suddenly the sword is pulled away from my throat and I'm shoved towards the door. Geez… Pushy. "Jhul ihd opnf ihx tlpabc." I turn back towards her and her ninjas just incase they try anything. What did she sa- Whoa! I catch my bo which was tossed over to me and quickly whip it around keeping it close against my side and pointing the one tip at them. What happens next nearly makes my eyes bug out of my head, Karai waves her hand –dismissing me- before turning back to Saka with one obvious intention.

I should help him. Despite being a mad scientist that tried to have me kill my family he is still a human being. Besides, I want to give him a few more lumps ad I'm pretty sure the rest of my family would love to too. I take a step forward only to have four of the five ninjas spin towards me with their weapons drawn. Karai gives me this look and I can tell I'm not wanted in this room right now. I might be able to take those four but then I'll have to contend with Karai and I'll think I'll leave that fight for Leo. Karai could probably wipe the floor with me and my head is beginning to throb. I'm really not in any shape to take anyone on right now. Sorry, Saka, but your on your own. I only hope that your death is a merciful one.

I spin on my heel and am out the door to the lab. I've got to get out of here. By the sounds of it there are people –or ninjas- fighting everywhere. It's a full fledge Foot Ninja on Foot Ninja war here. This is no place for a turtle without any back up. I should get out of here before the guys show up. The last thing I want is for them to get into a fight with the Foot when the Foot is already kicking Foot butt. Wait a minute… does that even make any sense?

A shriek from the lab that is cut off midway makes a shiver race up my spine. Saka's gone. I'm surprise that I feel a little upset about that but only because I think that my family and I should have dealt out the punishment and not Karai. Not that I was going to argue with her when she clearly had every intention of killing him herself. I doubt my family would've been able to kill him anyways. Put in him traction and make him a paraplegic definitely a yes.

I hustle down the hallway and turn the corner. It high time I got out of here and stopped listening what was going on around me. There has got to be a way out of here. A window, a door, a nice neon lit sign that says 'This way incase you're alone and the building has been overrun with Foot Ninjas'. Come on, this is ridiculous. Where's the door in this place?! Oh shell… Why am I always so lucky? The ten ninjas that I just ran into are obviously looking for a fight or they just want to see how bad they can tick me off.

I'm starting to sound like Raph… that can't be a good thing…

The first one lunges at me and I easily leap over him, making sure to slam my fist into the pressure point on his spine so he won't be getting up for awhile. I bring my bo up, blocking a katana and than side kicking the other ninja that tries to use that as a distraction and come at my unprotected side. I twist the bo one way and than the other, sliding the sword off to the side and than striking the ninja holding it in the face with the opposite end. I take two steps back as a ninja charges me, dropping into a crouch at the last second and tripping him with the end of my bo. Nice front flip, watching that landing though! I jump up using the momentum to add a small boast to my snap kick as I send another ninja into a back flip. Geez… someone should teach these guys a thing or two about sticking their landings.

I jump backwards and then to the side to avoid a pair of ninjas charging me. Okay, now if I got this right is should be able to knock both of them out. I plant my foot up on the wall and shove off it sending me flying shell first into those two goons and slamming them into the wall. I didn't think that that was going to be as affective as it was. Nice. I think I'll leave that kind of thing to Raph in the future. I almost pulled a muscle in my leg doing that.

It's time I stop waiting for these guys to come to me and time I started going to them. I trust my bo forward and catch one of the ninjas in the jaw with the end. I'm so glad I'm not that ninja's dentist. I dodge and spin around a ninja who was trying to catch me off guard. I slam my elbow into his back sending him crashing to the ground as I face the last one who's just standing there with his weapon raised. I spin my bo over the back of my hand a few times before grabbing it and pointing it at him. Bring it on.

Why is his stance relaxing, shouldn't he be getting ready to fight me? Umm… I glance over my shoulder with a bad feel- Oh for crying out loud. More Foot Ninjas? I think they're having a convention here or something. I turn back to the ninja in front of me. I think it's time for a tactical withdraw right about now and the easiest way to go is going to be straight ahead. I charge the ninja hearing the ninjas behind me come after me as well. For once in my life can I just avoid a big fight instead of getting more involved in it? I twist my bo off to the side as if I was going to strike to make the ninja bring up a block. He's so gullible. Another quick twist and I've planted the end in the floor and easily vault over his head. They fall for that one every time, now it's time to get the shell out of here!

Okay Don, you're looking for the way out. Just ignore the mob chasing you. As long as you stay one step ahead of them then you shouldn't have to worry about anything. Come on… Come on. I half slid around the corner, stumbling for a moment to get my feet back under me. I don't have time for this. I hate it when th- a door! Hopefully that leads outside. And it's not locked. That would be a big plus. I grab the handle and throw the door open. Freedom here I com-

Crud.

If Saka was the frying pan and Karai was the fire did I just jump into the incinerator or something?

It's a multi level warehouse which floor is covered with wall to wall ninjas fighting each other. I have a feeling that Karai has decided to put this little faction out permanently. How do they know who is who anyways? They all look alike to me. What happens if they accidentally attack one of their own? Would they even care or is this one of those 'last fighter standing' fights and it's everyone versus everyone.

The mute sound of feet running remind me of why I came bursting through this door in the first place. I don't want to be caught out in the open so running down the stairs is out of the question. I'm so glad that there are packing crates beneath me. Up and over the railing, Don, just don't mess up this landing otherwise you might break a bone or two. I land on top of several crates and spring off them to land in the shadows of the tower of crates that line the walls of the warehouse. It's like a maze down here, there are little passages everywhere. I slink through the shadows putting as much distance between the ninjas that just came through the door and myself as possible.

Hey, I know where I am now. I thought that the Foot had originally brought me into a parking garage on my first 'visit' here but really it was this warehouse place. Yep, there is the large elevator that they took me up to the lab on. So that means that I should be able to find a maintenance door near those large steel doors or at least the switch to open them with. At this point I don't care how much attention I'm going to generate as long as I find a way out of this mad house. I watch as a pair of ninjas roll past my hiding spot trying to strangle each other. The Foot are revolting. I think reality just took a flying leap off a ten story building. This place is going nuts.

I start towards the door only to get jerked backwards and spun around to- oof! A punch in the face. Nice. I stumble backwards and catch myself on a crate but not before I smack the back of my head off the crate. I could have done without that thank you. I glare at the Foot ninja who is standing in front of me brandishing his sword. Okay, if you want to fight I'll give you a fight. I twist my bo over the back of my hand a few times before leaping forward trying to draw the ninja off balance. He steps out of the way, ducks under a baseball bat style swing only to lean right into my snap kick. What is it with these guys and doing back flips? They should at least learn how to land right.

I made more noise than I wanted to with that little scuffle. It's time I moved to another location, preferably closure to the doors. I turn, now what would be the fastest yet stealthiest way to get to- Crud. Oh crud. Oh double crud. I swear if I could see these guys' faces that every one of these ninjas would be smiling at me and not in a nice way. I have a distinct feeling that I'm about to get my shell kicked.

As three rush towards me I grasp my bo in both hands and hold it between me and them. It's time to do a little defensive fighting. Dodging, sidestep, bloc- Ow! The katana meeting my bo like that have given me some pretty harsh vibrations down both of my arms. Geez, I think my hands are going numb… no time to think about that now, here comes a second wave. It's time to start taking down some of the ranks. I wish I could see how many of them are lurking here in the shadows with me. I guess that's a set back to fighting in the 'all concealing' shadows. It really does conceal all. I jump over the heads, spinning in mid air and slamming my bo into the back of their heads. I love this weapon. I land perfect-

OW! What the shell was that? I stumble backwards until my shell collides with some crates. I let go of my bo and reach for whatever is lodged in my shoulder. It has to be some kind of distance weapon like a suriken or a kunai. It sure as shell doesn't feel like either of those. My bo lists off to the side cause it freaking hurts to try and hold it up with whatever still sticking in me. Of course, an arrow, what else would the Foot shoot me with? I tear it out of my arm and drop it to the ground at my feet. With that little nuisance's gone I should be able to move my shoulder without pai- Ow… okay, maybe only limited pain. It's better than nothing right now that's for sure and at least it's not bleeding that bad. Hey, what just wrapped around my ankl-

I'm suddenly jerked off my feet and my head bounces off the crate behind me before I'm thrown into a bunch of crates that shatter around me. Ow. I guess I can give up on the whole staying silent thing. Every one in the bay heard that and probably a few of the guys still on the upper levels too. I moan as I start to shove the wood off me. At least my shell took the brunt of that hit but my head is starting to throb badly. My possibility for a concussion is pretty much mote by now, I'm bound to have one. It's going to make getting out of here that much more difficult. I'm surprised I was able to keep a grip on my bo and didn't have it fly off somewhere. That would have made this predicament all the mo-

Whoa!

Whatever is around my ankle just pulled me out of the pile of crates and into the ones lining the other side of the walkway. I crash through those crates and end up flying out into the main floor. Well, if no one heard me before than they know that I'm in the house now. I hit the floor hard and roll a few feet. Why couldn't I have landed on a nice soft ninja? I bet they all jumped out of the way because they knew it was me. Hey, I kept a hold of my bo again. I wonder if Mikey put superglue on it again. I need to whack him upside the head for that. Wait… My thoughts are all jumbled together. It must be the repeated hits to the head. I landed on my stomach so I roll onto my side and look at my ankle. A weighted chain is wrapped tightly around it leading back into the shadows on the side of the room. And whoever is on the other end just started yanking it back! Great more crate smashing for me!

A dull thunk and movement of the chain jerking to a stop makes me stare blankly at the weapon sticking it the floor. It land neatly so that it pinned the chain to the floor without actually cutting it. That was nice of someone but all they did was pin me to the floor in a room of Foot ninjas who at least half of which want to smash my head in. Of course, that's going on the assumption that Karai ordered her ninjas to leave me alone. This still isn't a good place to be pinned down. A roar echoes from the shadows only to have three ninjas come flying from the darkness in various stages of unconsciousness. At least now I know why that sai looks so familiar and judging by the sounds of fighting coming from the shadows, Raphael is in a very bad mood. I guess that comes with being rudely awaken at almost five in the morning.

"JBBCJPEP!!" AAHH! Casey's here too? I think my heart just jumped into my throat. I wasn't ready to hear his battle cry, doesn't he have work or something today. Or is he going to use this as an excuse not to go in? That would figure. I look over my shoulder as laughter fills the air. How can Mikey be fast asleep one moment and then wide awake the next? It's just not fair. I sit up and twist around to try and untangle the chain from my ankle. Shell, give me a torch cutter please.

The faintest touch of fingertips on the back of my neck causes me to jerk my hands away from my ankle. I know who that is. Yep, only Leo can cut through a chain and leave the skin underneath unblemished. Still kind of freaks me out when he does that but as long as he keeps from slice me open I'll let him cut me free any day. His hand hooks underneath my arm and I'm pulled to my feet. I can tell he's not happy with me for sneaking out without them but he'll wait to give me a lecture when we're out of here. Joy. Is he going to have to type the whole thing or is he going to sign it to me? Either way is going to be boring. Especially since Leo is such a slow typist. Maybe I can convince him to dictate to April.

Wha- I tense under Leo's hand as two shadows exploded out of the shadows. One hit the ground first and acts as a spring board for the other that lands in front of us. Raph of course. Who else would it be? He grabs his sai and easily tears it out of the floor even though it was nearly embedded to the hilt. How can Raph look worried, protective and 'I'm going to kick your shell as soon as we get home' all at once? I swear it's a gift of his.

"Ilr, Elb! Tl dhjiw ipul p ayboeld ilyl!" We all turn our heads towards Mikey's voice to se- Oh shell… Can this night get any worst? Okay, why did I say that? Now I know that it's going to get worst. Every ninja in the immediate vicinity to us has decided to put aside their differences long enough to beat our heads in. Leo's hand tightens on my shoulder as he weights our choices. I catch him looking me up and down out of the corner of my eye. I bet he's trying to decide if I'm capable of fighting or not. I can't imagine I look that good right now. Time to put his fears at ease.

I pull away from him, ignoring the slight pull backwards. Leo can be so much more overprotective than Raph, it's like a competition between them. Well… everything is a competition between those two. I tuck my toes underneath my bo and flip it up into my hands where I let it spin for a moment before catching it again and slam the point into the ground. I glance over my shoulder at Leo and Raph and give them a wink. They're both frowning at me, that can't be good. "Flla pc lrl bc ihd. Mbc'w elw ihd jlw wb kpy ptpr kybd vx," Leo says to Raph in a quiet voice before yelling to Mikey and Casey that had been slowly backing towards us. "Tl'yl jlwwhcj bvw wil xpdl tpr tl npdl hc, jvrx."

That seems to be all the ninjas need to hear too attack us. I block an incoming strike, twist around an elbow the ninja in the back of the head. As long as I don't move my right shoulder too much the pain is minimal. I just have to hope that I don't jar it too badly or it doesn't get hit. That could be painful. What the- oh Raph. What else is nothing but a dark green blur with a strip of red that goes careering recklessly into hordes of Foot ninjas? One of these days he's going to get himself killed.

The fight is brutal and hard. When one ninja goes down it seems like two more take its place. There's just no end to them. We need to get out of here. There's no way we're going to beat these odds. I catch a glimpse of Leo out of the corner of my eye. I can tell he's thinking the same thing. Actually, judging by the way we've slowly been pulling back towards the east wall of the warehouse it's what we're doing. There must be someway for us to get out over there. Maybe the guys broke a window open or something. Right now anything that will get us out of here is welcome. Leo catches my eye and then jerks his head to the crates behind us. I get it, Leo. Fall back.

I slam the side of my bo into the ninja's face that I had been dealing with before turning and running for the shadows behind us. Mikey's coming towards me from out of the darkness, I guess he was making sure no one was hiding in there waiting for us. He nods his head, indicating that there's someone behind me and then winks at me. Go for it Mikey, he's all yours. Right before we collide I duck and Mikey jumps over me using my shell to give him an added boast of height and distance. He always did like to play leap frog and judging by the loud thump he can still level a ninja while playing it. I run into the shadows. Okay, now what? Do I keep heading towards the wall or do I wait for someone to-

Someone's here. I turn around to face whoever- "Unh," Ow, lay off the arm whoever. It hurt enough before you punched it. Shell, I just dropped my bo to clutch my shoulder. That wasn't smart. Someone just grabbed my wrist and jerks it back behind my shell. "Ah!" Shell that hurts! Would you please leave my right arm alone! That's just pulling at the wound even more. Which is probably the whole reason you're- Okay I'm not going to struggle any more. Nope. I'll be a good hostage as long as you keep that sword pressed so tight against the side of my throat. The minute you let up, however, it's going to be a whole other story.

"LCBVJI!" Shell, Karai. That was my ear! Can't you yell when I'm not right next to you? She forces me to walk forward keeping the blade against my throat and my wrist is held tightly against my shell. Why the shell didn't I pay more attention when I ducked into the shadows? I hate being used as a hostage against my brothers. It's so humiliating…

"Mbcpwleeb!" Yes, Leo I'm right here. Now could you do something to get Karai to give me a chance to get away?

"Xil tpxc'w wilyl p xlnbcm pjb…" I can't help but sigh. Mikey's obviously beating himself up over me getting caught. Really it wasn't your fault, Mikey. I should have been ready for a possible ambush.

"Elw ihd jb Fpyph!" Leo's mad. You can tell it by his voice and the look on his face. I can just barely see him out of the corner of my eye. He takes a step towards us, swords at ready, only to stop when Karai jerks on my arm again causing me to gasp in pain. Would you stop doing that already? Leo freezes where he is but keeps his swords ready. Actually everyone in the room is still and silent. I guess whatever happens next is up to Karai.

"Wihx dpwwly cb ebcjly nbcnlycx rbv by rbv nepc Elbcpymb. Wihx hx p dpwwlt wipw wil Kbbw –pcm wil Kbbw pebcl- whee xlwwel. Hw hx whdl kby rbv wb elpul." Whoa! Karai suddenly shoved me forwards causing me to stumble over my own feet and collide with Leo's shoulder. Leo's grabbing at m- Ahh! Suddenly Leo is between Karai and I. One of his swords is up between us and the other is against my shell as he holds me against his side. I can live with that. I pretty sure that if he let's up I'm going to end up on the ground. The world really has to stop spinning so fast. She calmly steps away from where she had been holding me prisoner and gestures to the shadows beyond her. "Elpul pcm nbvcw rbvy belxxhcjx wipw rbv tpeflm ptpr kybd ilyl pehul."

I can practically hear the gears turning in Leo's head. I have a pretty good guess that Karai basically told us to scram. "Jvrx, avee bvw," Leo says as he pulls me towards the shadows. I have a feeling that Leo's not going to leave my side until we're back in the sewers in the very least.

"Elo, tl xi-" for once Raph can you just let something go?

"Ypaiple. Hw'x whdl wb jb." Leo's using his no nonsense voice as he takes a second to slide a katana back into its sheath before catching my wrist. I can hear Raphael growl but his near silent footsteps join Mikey's as they fall in behind Leo. Casey just kind of clomps along beside them. We really need to work on teaching his to walk quieter. He's quiet for a human but not for a ninja. As Leo half drags me past Karai, somehow managing to stay between us, I can help but look at her. Does she pity me? It sure looks like it.

We're swallowed by the shadows and Leo continues to pull me over to the wall. I can just barely make the outline of crates steadily decreasing in sizes as they go up the side of the wall. I bet we're going up them. Yep, I love it when I'm right. Leo and I calmly hop up the stack of crates till we get to the top where, conveniently, there is a rope dangling down from the ceiling so that our escape can be that much easier. Thank shell. Leo holds me back from going up the rope until Raph starts up it. Of course, he doesn't want me blindly walking into another ambush. I doubt I'll be released without a scratch again.

The rope leads to a window that Raph reaches and helps me through. We're on a fire escape on the side of the building with another one on the opposite side of the alley. It looks like the same one I went up when I escaped the lab the first time. I bet we're going to go across and up. As Leo joins us, Raphael jumps across to the other fire escape. Figures. I don't wait for Leo to 'tell' me to go across. It'll just be easier to go than wait for him to dictate my every action.

I match Raph's speed as he heads up the escape. I can tell he wants to reach the roof first. Really all this baby treatment is annoying. I really wish I could tell them to knock it off but… it's nice. Heh heh… despite Raphie's best attempts to beat me to the roof we reach it at the same time. I can tell his annoyed but the set of his shoulders and jaw. If I could understand him I bet that he would be telling me off about now. Leo, Mikey and Casey join us on the rooftop mere seconds after we get there. Hey, Casey has my bo in his golf bag. He must've seen it and grabbed it from where I dropped it. I'll have to thank him later. Obviously our little run isn't done yet and –yep, Leo telling me to follow them. Easy enough.

I love running across the rooftops at night and the fact that dawn is slowly coming and is casting all these different hues if blues and some pinks and yellows across the sky is just as added bonus. It's beautiful. I can't help but notice how long a night it has been though. First waiting till everyone had fallen asleep, fixing the tracker in my watch, deactivating the alarm April put on the door, followed by watching the patrol routes for several hours, sneaking into the lab, finding the notebook, getting caught and then fighting and generally getting my shell kicked around by Foot ninjas makes for a very long night. To top it all off, I doubt the guys are just going to let me go to sleep until I tell them what happened and why I suck out on them. Oh, and how could I forget Leo's lecture and Raph's ranting? I just hope that those two will be the only ones to ream me out and not everyone else. I'll never get to sleep until no-

_BBBOOOOOOMMMMM!!!_

What the shell was that?! I look back at where the lab was and I can see the plume of smoke from the explosion. I guess the Foot didn't want to leave behind any evidence of them being there for the authorities to find. We're all just kind of standing here watching the smoke drift into the sky. Which is really high up there... like really… why am I getting a sense of vertigo from looking up? Oh shell, I'm tipping over backwards. "Mbcchl!" Yeah Mikey, I'm a little worried too. Why do I feel like I'm fainting? Thanks for the catch Mikey. I don't think hitting my head off the rooftop would have helped me stay conscious.

"Cbt tipw wil xilee hx tybcj thwi ihd?" Yeah I'm annoyed with this too Casey. Seriously me passing out and collapsing every other hour is starting to get really old.

I can feel myself start to fade as Raph's hand presses against the side of my throat then moves up as if he's checking for a fever. "Ihx avexl pcm bylpwihcj hx lelupwld ovw il mblxc'w xlld wb ipul p kluly… H wihcf il'x gvxw lsipvxwlm." Man I'm tired. I feel him check the wound on my shoulder. "Wihx hxc'w xlyhbvx lcbvji wb dpkl ihd kphcw."

"Elw'x jlw olebt wil xwyllw," I can feel someone pull my duffle off my shoulder as Leo speaks. They better not leave that up here after everything I went to get that stuff. "Lulyrbcl, flla rbvy lrlx balc kby pc pdbvxi."

"H jbw ihd," Mikey says and suddenly I'm floating. I didn't realize Mikey could carry me too. Great, now everyone has had a turn in carting me around. "Mbc'w tbyyr Ypai. Il ebxw ehfl p ivcmylm abvcmx tilc rbv wbbf ihx mvkkel bkk."

"Gvxw mbc'w xwyphc rbvyxelf, knucklehead."

Wait…

Was that English?

Or am I…just imagining…

…


	24. Chapter 24: It's far From Over

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Sorry I wasn't able to get this out in time for the holidays, everyone, but I figure that this chapter will be worth the wait._

_Oh and there is going to be two more chapters after this so ignore what I said ealier ;)_

_Happy Holidays!_

Chapter Twenty Four: It's far From Over

…

…

Huh?

Th-This is…

Getting old…

Water?

Why am I hearing water splash around? My body feels heavy. Everything seems to weight a ton right now. I can't even get my eyes open let alone move. Am I swaying? It feels like it. My arm is swinging back and forth from where it's dangling ever so slightly and my side is warm. Someone is carrying me. I think I remember hearing Mikey say something and than Raph saying something back before calling him a knucklehead for whatever reason.

Wait. I hear Raph call Mikey a knucklehead? That means my ability to understand speech is coming back. Sweet! And here I was worrying that it was a permanent affliction. I can't believe that I am actually hoping to hear Raphael verbally abuse Mikey again. Actually if someone would say something so I know I wasn't just hearing something it would be nice. Come on… someone say something! I'm shifted slightly and I can hear a slight grunt come from whoever is carrying me. I guess Raphie isn't the one carrying me around this time.

"Mb you cllm dl wb npyyr ihd kby p bit, Dhflr?" Thanks for saying something Leo but I was kind of hoping for some more promising results than that. In a sentence of eleven words I only understood two of them. Hmmm… I guess I still have a little way to go before being able to say that I'm fully healed. Speech is going to return to me slowly. I bet that the more I'm exposed to it the easier it's going to be for me to understand what is going on around me.

"Cb, H got ihd. H gvxw mbc'w ehfl ibt il's barely oylpwihcj…" Two for twelve isn't that bad I guess… I have to keep a positive out look on things. Wait, Mikey's carrying me now? Great, I'm being passed around like a pizza box at supper.

"Clhwily mb H," I can feel Raph grab my free wrist and take my pulse. "His ilpyw ypwe hx wbb xebt wb ol nbcshmlylm normal or safe. Pcm tilc H xpr cbydpe H dlpc kby vx Dhflr." What on earth is Raph talking about? Am I sick again? Or, I should say, am I even sicker than I was before? Judging by how he took my wrist and that worried tone in his voice I'm not doing to good. But why can I hear everything? It feels like I'm almost asleep but… not. Weird.

The familiar grinding slid that the front door makes when it's opened is music to my ears. It's so good to be home, even if I'm not able to see it or walk in under my own power, it's still nice to know I'm safe. "Mbcpwleeb! What ipx ipaalclm wb ihd?!" I could have done without the whole panicky father routine but it wouldn't be home without Master Splinter.

I can hear Leo's voice in the background talking to Master Splinter. Probably filling him in on tonight's events. Raph's voice is doing an admirable job blocking them out though as he fills April in on my current health judging by how her hands are moving over my skin. Actually, both conversations are coming in as nothing more than a confused array of voices that are only making sense occasionally. This is giving me such a headache…

…

…

Did I fall asleep? Or fade even deeper into unconsciousness or something? One thing is for sure I am not being held in Mikey's arms at the foot of the stairs anymore. It feels like I'm in a bed and I have an IV in the back of my hand? And I'm on oxygen again? And a heart monitor? I guess I really am pretty bad off. I still can't move either. I wonder what's happening to me… Maybe they decided to drug me to make me rest more? That doesn't make any sense and I wouldn't be hooked up to all this equipment if I was just asleep.

"No nipcjl?" Ahh! Jeez, when did Casey walk into the room? Did he have to give me a heart attack like that?

"No," April's here too. Judging by the sound of the chair squeaking slightly as she shifts in it, she's sitting right next to me. Now I know I'm badly hurt for April to be sitting by my side. "Ihx vitals are xwhee wil same. Il'x hc p coma."

Coma? I'm in a coma? Shell, why would I slip into a coma? The drugs that are floating though my system could have done it. The drugs were designed to alter my brain chemistry, make me forget certain things and act upon others, so that seems to be reasonable. The chemicals designed to shut down my thought process must have shut down most of my mind causing me to slip into a coma. The stress that I put my mind under when I remembered everyone followed by the exhaustion of breaking into the ninja facility on my own must have caused a… relapse of sorts and a general shut down. I wish I could move so I could pound my head off the nearest wall. When will I be able to live a semi normal life again?

"Don't tbyyr, opol. Il'ee ol okay." Yeah, I'm going to be okay Casey. Don't let April give up hope just yet. If I can remember everyone than there is no way a coma is going to take me down. I'll beat it. "Trust dl. Wihx is Donnie tlyl talking pobvw. Lulyrwihcj hx going wb ol alright, now come bc. Rbv cllm to get some rest." I can hear her sigh and then the scraping of the chair as she stands up and leaves.

"Yell if pcrwihcj changes," she whispers. I can tell she's pausing in the doorway, watching me while waiting for a response.

"Count bc hw," Casey says as the chair squeaks as he sits down. There's a silence for a moment before he says, "Come on, orb. Tpfl up. Don't dpfl dl a lair." I'm trying, Casey. I'm planning on waking up. The only question is when?

…

…

I think I'm drifting in and out of consciousness or something. Well, as close to consciousness as someone can come when in a coma. Actually, I feel like the time that Leonardo and I went into the harbor in the middle of January. I could feel Raph and hear him as he yelled at Mikey to bring Leo to the van. Then all I remember was warm blankets and someone forcing me to drink soup. When I woke up I determined that both Leo and I had almost slip into a hibernated state but because of our mutated DNA it would have been next to impossible to wake us up from it. So now the question is am I in a coma or is my body attempting to hibernate? Either way I know that it is not going to end well for me.

Hmm… I'd know that sigh anywhere. Why does Leonardo always feel the need to blame himself or twist around the facts of what happened so that the blame for these things always lands on his shoulders? It's not like he could have done anything to prevent me from slipping into this limbo. Umm… actually yes he could have. He could have prevented me from leaving the lair last night or he could have followed me to the junkyard the night I was kidnapped or he could've… I am so glad that Leo can't read my mind.

I can feel Leo fuss with the blanket that I seemed to be wrapped up in before he sits back down in his chair. His hand carefully covers mine which seems to be the only part of me exposed besides my face. Considering that there is an IV coming out of it I can understand the lack of blankets. Leo's hand is warm enough that my hand doesn't feel cold anymore. Where the oxygen mask on my face isn't covering I'm cold too. I'm going to have to look into finding someway to increase the warm air in this room especially when a patient is suffering with the chills.

I can tell by the way Leo seems to be absent mindedly rubbing the side of my hand with his thumb that he's getting ready to say something. I can just see him now sitting next to me looking at the floor and covering my hand with his own. That's the classic 'I'm sulking' pose Leo does anyways. I wish I could wake up and get him to not blame himself for this. Knowing Leonardo he already has some reasoning as to why this is his fault that he'll stick to no matter what. Shell, I can't even sigh when I'm like this.

"H'd sorry Don," I can hear the self blame in his voice already. He can be so predictable. "Wihx never sibvem ipul happened. I should ipul cluly elw it happened. That argument tl ipm cluly should have gotten so out of hand. I xibvem ipul npeelm p stop to it way before you stormed bvw bk wil room. H cibvem ipul told you to stay in the lair tilc rbv wbem dl rbv tlyl going to the junkyard. I should've…" He sighs, cutting himself off. I wish I could tell him to stop blaming himself. I wish I could do anything right about now.

His thumb stops moving over the side of my hand and I can practically feel him look up at my face. "I guess hk rbv tlyl awake you tbvem ol telling me not to blame myself kby xbdlwihcj H couldn't control. Or rbv tbvem ol telling me that I shouldn't be mtlrrhcj nc wil past." Yeah, I would be telling you that right not if I could. I also would be telling you the hindsight is twenty-twenty but there is no way to change what has already happened.

"I'm so sorry Donnie," Hey, I understood and entire sentence. That's got to be a good sign. "I will cluly elw wihx happen again. Never." Okay… Now Leo is making some kind of oath in his head to be even more of an overprotective brother than he already is. In a way it's kind of exasperating, I know how to take care of myself, but I have to admit that I am so glad that he is my overly protective big brother.

…

…

I wish I could yawn. I'm so tired right now that it is not even funny. I think I read somewhere that a coma was believed to be like the person was sleeping but unable to wake up. I don't remember where I read that so I can't tell if I am pulling the information from a credible source. Hmm… if I'm hibernating than and increase of warmth and oxygen should be able to wake me. I still have the mask over my face and I can feel the oxygen being blown into my face but I'm still only taking shallow breaths. The warmth from the blankets don't seem to be helping much either. If anything the constant heat is making me sleepier.

A hand gently caresses the side of my face. Father? I would know that furry paw anywhere. He must be so worried about me right now. What's he doing? I can feel his fingers pressing gently on the side of my face and than a slightly sharper, steady pressure between them. What the shell? His fingers leave but that slight pressure's still there. Now his fingers are back and there's another sharp pressure between them. Now his fingers are gone and that pressure is still there but it's fading like the other one has. I can barely feel either of them now. The side of my neck feels better too. Now that's weird.

Oh duh, acupuncture. Sensei is trying to revive me by realign the chi in my body with the acupuncture needles. It's a good thing I'm not awake. If I freaked out over a hypodermic needle I might've panicked over an acupuncture needle too. Since I know him will I panic around him like I did earlier? I was able to sit still while April took a blood sample so theoretically I probably would have been able to remain seated while Sensei used the acupuncture needles on me. When did Master Splinter learn about acupuncture anyways?

His hands are back and, just as carefully as before, Master Splinter inserts two more needles in the same places on the opposite side of my face. His fingers gentle press against my collar bone right against several pressure points. There's a dull smell in the air, like a cross between… Ginseng and Ginkgo Biloba? Of course, two Chinese herbs that promote energy and memory retention. Well, Ginkgo is usually used in elderly humans to promote circulation and that would help increase blood flow to my brain so I guess I can understand why Master Splinter is using it. He doesn't want me to forget everything I had just remembered. The Ginseng promotes energy so maybe that'll help wake me up?

Master Splinter's fingers leave and I can hear the faint sound of him take something from a container and rubbing it in his hands. A salve? It has to be. That must be where I'm smelling the herbs from. His fingers gently press against my temples and begin to rub the salve in circles into my skin. It's really relaxing. "Donatello. Hw'x whdl to wake up, my son." Did my eyelids just twitch? Master Splinter stops all movement for a moment and just waits. "Donatello?" I can't seem to do anything. How did I just twitch my eyes lids? Are these natural remedies working?

Master Splinter's fingers return to their gentle massage. "Please, dr xbc. Nbdl back to us." I'm trying sensei. I'm trying…

…

…

"Aren't you hungry, Donnie?" Huh? Is that a trick question Mikey? I really can't tell if I'm hungry or not. How long have I been hovering in limbo anyways? "I don't care what April and Raph say, there's no way rbv npc ol jlwwhcj lcbvji food through that tube in your hand." Technically, I'm receiving nutrients and fluids through the 'tube' Mikey not food.

He sighs and I can feel something gently thump on the mattress next to me. Great, now he's attempting to give himself a concussion on a mattress. "This is all my fault pcm olkbyl rbv xpr anything, it is, so don't try pcm wpef dl out of it." I wish I could Mikey. This is not your fault. It's no one's fault. "If I hadn't said those things to you… I know you care about us Mbcchl. Ebbf pw everything you've done for us. You make vx pee wilxl cool toys and defensive systems and stuff like that. You play doctor pcm mlcwhxw for us." I am NOT a doctor! How many times do I have to say that! "And you've turned it all into a hobby for yourself. That's tipw ylpeer gets me. There are so many more fun hobbies bvw wilyl ehfl comic books and video games and superheroes and cooking rlw rbv swpr hc your lab and figure out how to keep us all safe and happy."

It silent for a moment before Mikey speaks again. "Do you remember the words H xphm tilc H tpx yelling at you? I actually had to go look them up wipw pkwlycbbc npvxl I didn't remember what you told me they meant. You remember when rbv wbem dl about them?" Yeah, I do Mikey. We were watching a late night horror movie together and I had to know if I acted like that crazed madman of a scientist. "You were as close to tears as H luly yldldblyhcj xllhcj you cause you thought that was how you acted. You sometimes become obsessed ehfl wipw ovw cluly to the point where it would hurt you or anyone else. You're you, Mbc. Rbv tbvem never be a pompous, egotistical, megalomaniac. No matter tipw rbv tbvem think."

"I just want you back, bro. We all do. H mbc'w npyl what I have to do to make you realize I didn't mean what I said. I gvxw tpcw rbv wb wake up again so I can apologize." You already have apologized to me Mikey. Don't worry about it.

…

…

Someone is playing with the IV stand. I guess I've gone through at least one bag of fluids by now. How long have I been out anyways? It's got to be awhile if I gone through one bag of fluids. I've probably gone through several by now but this is the first time I've been 'awake' for it. Movement in the room stops for a moment and there's the heavy sound of someone flopping down in the chair next to me with a gusty sigh. It's gotta be Raph. Only Raph sounds like that when he is upset.

I can practically hear the gears in his head whirling. "I should have followed rbv wb wil junkyard." Oh great he's going to have a guilt session too? The self confidence in the lair must be at an all time low right now. "Bet you didn't know I usually follow you tilc rbv jb wilyl alone." You do? Where the shell are you then? I've never seen or hear any sign of you when I there. "It's not like I'm right there hc wil gvcfrpy, with you. I hide on the buildings nearby until rbv ilpm opnf into the sewers. That way you don't feel like someone hovering over rbv. H fcbt you hate that." I really didn't know Raph. Thank you for worrying about me and taking my feelings into account.

"I just couldn't bring myself to follow rbv tipw chjiw. I was mad. I figured you were mad, and wipw hk tl ypc hcwb each other it would just lead to another fight. So I stayed here and attack my bag. The next morning H kbvcm bvw you were missing and I needed a new punching bag before noon. It was so weird, Don… Almost as weird as me talking to you when I know you can't hear me," If only you knew Raphie. "No matter what I did, who I fought, nothing seemed to calm me down. Even Casey couldn't figure out to get me to loosen up…"

"Remind me that I need to repay that knucklehead. I owe him a lot. He couldn't pnw ehfl wil confidant that you always have been kby dl ovw he was always there. It was like he wanted to talk to me but didn't know what to say." I wonder if that had to do with what Casey and I promised each other over a year ago. I didn't think Casey would remember that. "He saved my shell from one huge lecture from Leo and I don't want to think of what Mikey would have done if he found out. Sensei made me swear not to tell them or anyone else…" I can feel him staring at me. "But I want to tell you… I think it's something that you should know." I hear him get out of the chair and next thing I know he's leaning over me. "If you can hear wihx xbdlibt, Donnie. Don't. Tell. Anyone." I wouldn't dream of it Raph. This has to be something important if he's whispering this into my ear. "I… I… I killed four people ebbfhcj for you."

WHAT?!

Raph actually killed someone?!

And not just one but four?!

Oh shell Raph…

I feel the mattress move as he sits back in his chair. No wonder he doesn't want me to tell anyone. Killing someone, even if we believe that they should be killed, goes against everything Master Splinter has ever taught us. He was always telling us that life was sacred and should be cherished ever since I can remember. Shell, I wish I could do something to… I don't even know where to start to make him feel better.

The screech of the chair on the floor is heard and I can feel Raph gently cover my hand with his own as his forehead comes to rest on my shoulder. "And don't you dare tell [crbcl H'ul cried on your shoulder twice hc wil apxw four days." Don't worry, Raph. I won't tell anyone about what you did or how many times you've cried on me in the past couple days. I just wish I could give you a hug and let you cry properly on my shoulder.

…

…

My eyes snap open and I stare at the ceiling above me for a moment before yawning into the oxygen mask still on my face. That was a good sleep. Okay, well not really. I'm just glad that I'm awake finally. I wonder how long I've been out. I glance around the room, I wonder where everyone is. It's weird that they would have been sitting with me all this time and now that I'm finally awake no one's here to see it. I guess that's called karmic justice or something.

I sit up slowly. I'm not dizzy or even light headed. I feel like I've over slept if anything. I glance over at the equipment next to me. Everything seems to be in order but I should probably take it easy. I take the mask off my face and wait for a minute while watching the heart monitor. No change. That's good. I better turn this off before I remove the nodes on my sides and chest. The last thing I want is for everyone to panic on me because the heart monitor started screaming out that my heart had stopped when really I took off the nodes. Now that that is off and the nodes are history it's time to untangle myself from the blankets and see if I can stand up without falling over.

I think that the blankets are in on a conspiracy to keep me in bed. It's kind of chilly without them. And the floor is cold. Yup, everything is definitely against me getting out of bed but where is everyone? And what is that exceptional smell coming from the kitchen? Did Mikey make biscuits or something? I hope he made them himself. Home made biscuits are the best. Let's see if I can walk before I try and make it to the kitchen.

Well I can walk the length of the bed and back just fine. I don't even need to use the IV stand as a crutch. I guess I can take the needle out of the back of my hand. I'll just leave that on the bed until I find everyone. Then I can come back and pick up everything. I need to get a bandage on the entry point for that needle. The last thing I need is a serious blood borne infection to develop. I'm surprised that I don't have any other bandages from my little trip. My ribs are a little tender but they seem to be alright…

Someone was thoughtful enough to leave a set of pads and a new mask for me. I guess everyone was more than just a little anxious for me to wake up. I really want to find them but I take the time to put on my mask and pads anyways. I just feel a little bit more confidant and sure of myself with these things on. I don't know why I would be feeling insecure around my family… it probably has something to do with my inability to talk. At least I know I can understand what they are saying. I wonder if I can speak English or if I'm still speaking gibberish. Well, I won't know until I find someone to talk to.

The lab's empty but I wasn't expecting to find anyone in here anyways. No one messes around with what I have in the lab unless it's an emergency, I asked them to get me something, or I'm in here with them. I wonder if anyone has even been in here at all. I bet the only reason anyone came in here was if they were going into med bay. I can hear the faint sound of voices and the sound of silverware and dishes clinking together. At least now I know where everyone is. It's time to eat. I wonder if Mikey made enough for me, I starving. And that was by far the stupidest question I've thought off since I woke up. Mikey always makes enough for everyone plus ten.

This has to be the weirdest scene I have ever seen. I don't remember ever recalling a time where everyone was still and silent. They all seem to be lost in thought, staring into their respective steaming bowls. Looks like Mikey made home made chicken soup with biscuits. He knows I love that. Maybe he was trying to wake me up with the smell of my favorite meal. I wonder if that's why I woke up. Speaking of Mikey, I can't help but smile as he comes out of the kitchen with a basket covered in a towel. That's got to be the biscuits. He sets them on the table lacking his usual flare but still smiling. That is so forced Mikey, "There you go guys. Dig in." Everyone begins to move slowly, reaching for the basket and stirring their hot soup. This is like a scene right out of a twilight zone.

I can feel someone staring at me. Who would be- oh. Of course, Mikey. He must've been turning to the go back into the kitchen and just caught me enough out of the corner of his eye to do a double take on me. Wow, talk about looking utterly shocked. His jaw is about to hit the floor and his eyes are the size of dinner plates. His eyes are full of disbelief and hope. Shell, what have I put you through Mikey? What have I put everyone through? "Mikey, what's wrong?" I look over at the voice and find myself meeting Leo's eyes as he looks towards me. Wow, talk about being concerned. "Donnie?"

That's all it takes for everyone to stop what they are doing and just stare at me. Now this is an intimidating scene. I just let my eyes trail over everyone's faces. I can't tell who more concerned, happy or hopeful. Do they honestly think that they are having a group delusion or something? I should say something, that should help, but what if they can't understand me? I guess I won't find out till I say something. "Umm… hey, guys. What's up?"

Wow, now that was original.

"DONNIE!!!" Oh shell! Mikey's going to tackle me! Oof! Okay so that wasn't exactly a tackle but I did get hit hard enough to knock me back a couple of steps. Mikey's arms are wrapped tight around me but he's not crushing me to himself. He's just holding me closely. "You're awake… You're awake… You're awake… You're awake… You're awake… You're awake… You're awake… You're awake… You're awake…" He keeps mumbling into my shoulder. I hug him back as best I can with my arms nearly pinned by him. I missed Mikey's hugs…

Huh? Why Mikey let me go? I didn't think he would be doing that anytime soon. A hand takes my arm and the next thing I know I'm face to face with Leo. "Are you alright?" he asks before I can so much as blink. He's searching my face, looking for something.

"As long as you can understand what I'm saying then yes." Judging by the look in his eyes he was hoping to hear that. He hugs me then, just as tightly as Mikey did but this time I'm able to get my arms around him and hug him back. I'll have to give Mikey a hug later just because I can.

"We can understand everything you're saying, Donnie. You're all better now." Well that's a relief, and here I was worried that they couldn't understand me. I sigh in relief into his shoulder. He's right that means that I really am all better.

"WOOHHOO! DON'S BACK!" Leo let's go of me just in time for me to be caught in a bear hug, whipped off my feet and spun around by a way to excited Casey. I can hear people telling him to be careful and that seems to tell him to put me down and let go. Of course that makes me stumble backwards but I'm caught by someone who turns me around and hugs me. Wow, talk about making the room spin.

"Would you calm down before he faints again!" That was my ear you just bellowed into Raph. I gather my feet under me and hug him. He just tights his arms and I can feel him swallow harshly into my shoulder.

"It's alright, Raph. I feel fine." I tighten my arms for a moment before stepping back. It's hardly noticeable to anyone who doesn't know Raph that much but I can tell his fighting back tears.

"Donnie," I turn just in time to open my arms to hug April. She sighs before pulling back. 'Are you sure you're feeling okay? Your not dizzy or nauseous or anything?"

I can't help but smile at her. She's always been worried about my health. "I fine, April. Really." She doesn't look convinced but the movement out of the corner of my eye makes me look at Splinter who's walking over calmly. I can tell he's hiding his excitement and worry. He's walking just a tad faster than normal.

"Sensei," I turn and bow to him give him the respect he deserves. I can't imagine how hard this has been for him. Having one of his sons kidnapped only to have him show up again missing his memory. Then after everything has happened that same son slips into a coma for at least a day. That would be an emotional rollercoaster for anyone. I would be more worried about his heart giving up on him. I stand up and there's something in his eyes that make me step closer to him and fall on my knees, clasping him close to me. "Father," I whisper as I breathe in his familiar scent. He's holding me just as close and says what he always does in situations like this.

"My son."

It's all I can do not to burst into tears. It's over. It's finally over. Saka's been dealt with, I'm going to be fine, and everyone is alright. Oh shell, Master Splinter, why did you have to start stroking the back of my head. I remember when I was just a little turtle that when I would get upset you'd do that to calm me down, Father. I swallow hard and hold him closer. Do not cry… Do not cry… thank shell I didn't cry again.

After what seems like hours but can only be a couple of minutes, Master Splinter let's go of me and takes a step back. I really don't want to let him go but I do. I should be getting up anyways. I can still feel everyone's eyes on me and it's making me self conscious. Is there dirt on my knee pads? "Are you feel better, Donatello?" I stop brushing at my knees and look up at Sensei. I can tell by the smile on his face that he knows I'm feeling a little self conscious.

"Yes, Sensei," I stand up but before I can say anything else there's a loud rumbling growl that everyone can easily hear. Talk about embarrassing…

"The stomach has spoken!" Mikey's voice sounds like that of an announcer at a sporting event. "And must be appeased!" Ahh! I feel like a rag doll! Despite his firm grip Mikey gently –and quickly- pulls me over to the table and I find myself sitting in my usual spot blinking in confusion as to how Mikey just broke the speed barrier when crossing the room. A bowl of steaming chicken noodle soup is pushed over in front of me. "Don't worry, I'll grab myself another. Dig in!" Then Mikey was gone from the room and the normal sounds of chaos that usually happens when he's in the kitchen echoed out to where I am sitting. It's nice to know that nothing has changed while I've been sick.

"You don't know how good it is to see you up and moving around again, Don."

I can't help but smile at Leo as everyone else sits down at the table. "I have to admit it's nice to be up again. For a while there I was wondering if my speech impediment was permanent."

"I was worried about that too." I blow across a spoonful of soup as April talks. "Though your memories and ability to read had returned you still seemed completely lost when it came to understand what we were saying."

"He understood his name pretty well." Mikey pulls out his chair and sits down with another bowl of soup.

"I recognized the sound of it Mikey. It still sounded like a bunch of jumbled letters but I knew that you guys were talking about me or to me by the sounds."

"Why di'e get rid of yur abilit' to talk in th firt place?"

"Don't talk with you're mouth full, Casey."

I doubt he'll ever get use to using proper manners anytime soon, April. "It was actually a side effect from the combination of drugs he was using."

"How do you know that?"

I glance at Raph as I swallow the mouthful of soup I just ate. "I read it in his notebook. Did you bring my duffle from the rooftop?" He nods his head and I start to get up, "Where did yo-"

"I'll get it!" Mikey says before vanishing from the table. I swear he needs one of those little dust clouds that follows the roadrunner around in his favorite show. He's here one minute then gone the next. See, I barely blink and he already has my duffle. He hands it to me. "Don't you just love service with a smile?" he says giving me a beaming smile that I can't help but return.

"Thanks, Mikey." Okay, now where is- ah ha! Here it is. "This is all the notes that Saka –that's the name of the 'doctor' who seemed to be in charge of this experiment- took on us to decide who to do this to and then the notes of exactly what he did."

"He took notes on us?"

I nod to Leo as April asks if she can see the notebook. "Here you go, April." I hand the notebook across the table to her. "Did you know that the Foot has video tapes of us fighting?" I can tell by the look on Leo's face that he didn't know that and he's not pleased in the least about it either.

"When the shell did they do that?"

"I have no idea Raph. I'm just hoping that they were in the lab when it blew up." Somehow I doubt it but I can still hope.

"The question is what was Saka attempting to do." Master Splinter asks. He doesn't look happy about the fact that the Foot was able to get video tapes of us fighting either. I bet were going to go looking to make sure that those tapes were destroyed later this week.

Now this is going to catch everyone's attention. "He was attempting to brainwash me into killing everyone." Like I thought the room goes death silent at that remark. Everyone is in various staged of shock and disbelief. Mikey has a spoonful of soup halfway to his mouth and the contents are slowly dribbling back into the bowl. Talk about a conversation stopper…

"What are you talking about Don?"

Leave it to Leo to break the silence in favor of more details. "Just what it means Leo. Saka was 'programming' me with subliminal messages so that when I heard a certain combination of words and saw something I would become a killing machine and attack everyone with the intent to kill."

A heavy hand lands on my shoulder. Since when did I start staring into my lap? "You'd never attack us, Donnie." Thanks for trying to make me feel better Raph but it's not going to work. Saka almost succeed in making me attack you…

"Yes I would have, Raph. The combination of chemicals made me completely forget who you are to me. Why do you think I had amnesia? When I first attacked you after April tried to get a blood sample from me, I almost took a knife off the table instead of the pepper shaker when I was fighting with Leo."

"But you didn't," Leo says quickly before I can continue with all the other ways I was acting very unlike me. "Instead you chose a non-lethal way to take me out of the fight. You wouldn't kill one of us Don, no matter what kind of drugs was in your system."

"I doubt that Leo. I had no clue of who any of you were or anything about me."

"But you came to the apartment."

"Only because I vaguely recognized the area around it. I was trying to find my way home. I'm still trying to figure out how I woke up in the first place. There were enough sedatives in my system to keep me out for at least another day."

Master Splinter is looking thoughtful, "Exactly when did you wake up Donatello?"

"About an hour before I found Casey and April's apartment."

"Hey that's about the time we…" I look at Michelangelo as he trails off. Mikey, Raph and Leo are all looking exceptionally proud with themselves. I just I missed something.

Sensei recognizes my confused look and explains, "I could sense you in my meditation but I could not reach out to you. Leonardo, Raphael and Michelangelo decided to try and reach you together as one. Obviously they were successful."

They were really able to reach me through mediation? Is that scientifically possible? "You guys woke me up?"

"We weren't sure if we did or not." Leo says seemingly overly proud of himself. Even Raph seems happy. I guess they really did reach me somehow…

"Yeah it's like at first we could senses you and then –poof!- you were gone." Mikey says waving his arms around hectically. Why is he waving around his arms anyways?

"I get it now…" That's the first time April has said anything since I gave her that notebook. "By using two words that we would most likely say followed by seeing Splinter, the drugs would block out Don's memory and cause him to attack us. However, because of Don's mutated physiology the drugs reacted differently than what Saka expected and caused Don to lose his ability to understand English thus rendering the effects of the drugs useless."

"Does it say anywhere that he was able to 'program' me, April? I never did get a chance to read that much of it."

"It doesn't say anything about him 'programming' you, Don. You can hear 'safe' and 'home' all you want." She closes the notebook and sets it down on the table. "And since you haven't freaked out around Master Splinter you should be fine."

"That was what supposes to change Don into a blood thirsty ninja assassin? Why'd he pick those words?"

"Think about it bonehead," I would tell Raph to show some respect to Casey but Casey never shows any respect to Raphael so I guess it works for them. "What would be the first things out of our mouths after we rescued him from a Foot stronghold?"

"I didn't even know you knew what those words meant, bean breath."

"Lightweight!"

"Gack face!"

"If you two are going to fight, do it away from the dishes!"

"You go, April!"

"Stay out of this, Mikey!" As Raph yells at Mikey I can't help but meet Leo's eyes. Yup, I guess everything is pretty much back to normal now.

I notice that Mikey is starting to pick up the table and, without even thinking about it, I start to help. "You don't have to help, Donnie. Why don't you go get some rest or watch some TV with everyone else? I got this." It would be nice to sit back and relax but I would probably fall asleep and I've had enough sleep to last me awhile.

"Its okay, Mikey. It'll go faster with the two of us. Besides, I sit down on the couch and I'm going to be asleep in a few minutes. I think I ate too much of that soup of yours. It was delicious." That took the fight right out of him. Complimenting Mikey on his cooking is a sure fired way to get him to give up any fight. It works every time.

We're almost done doing the dishes when it happens. I'm just putting away a plate when I just… stop. The plate isn't even all the way in the cupboard and I just freeze where I'm standing. For about thirty seconds, I can't seem to move. And when I can move again it's jerky. I put the plate away and just look at my hand for a minute. What the shell was all that about? "Hey, Don, can you hand me the soap?" Mikey says from the sink where he's finished emptying the water and is now stacking more dishes into it. I reach over to grab the soap to toss it to him but nearly grab one of the knives in the knife block before changing direction and grabbing the soap bottle instead. Uh ho… I have a bad feeling about this…

I turn and throw the bottle as hard as I can at Mikey's head.

What the shell possessed me to do that?! "Ow!" Mikey says as he rubs the back of his head. At least that wasn't a knife… "Don why the shell did you… Don? Are you alright?" Mikey's tirade is cut short when he looks at me. "Donnie?" I start walking towards, dropping the dish cloth which flutters to the ground. Why am I walking towards him anyways? "Don? Come on, bro. You're starting to scare me…" I'm starting to scare you? How do you think I feel? I can't figure out why I would throw a soap bottle at you and then march towards you like this. "Don?" His voice is small as he cowers backward against the sink. "Say something…"

He screams like a girl as I try to punch him. I'm so glad that he jumps out of the way but I wish he hadn't put dishes in the sink. Talk about making a lot of noise. I can hear Leo ask if we're okay from the living room. No I'm not okay, Leo! I think I'm going insane. I can't control what I'm doing anymore and what's worst is even though I know I cut my knuckles up when I punched the dishes in the sink I can't feel any pain. That could be a bad sign.

I turn towards Mikey who's doing a wonderful impression of someone trapped in a horror movie. He blinks at me then promptly screams again and bolts out of the kitchen. "LEO!" he yells as he leaves. No, don't you dare go after him. Bad body! Bad! Leave my little brother alone! Oh shell, now I've really gone insane, I'm yelling at my body like it is a bad dog. "Leo! Don's gone nuts!" Mikey yells from the living room.

I –well actually my body which now seems to have a mind of its own- run out of the kitchen after Mikey only to run right into Raph. I get the briefest glance at a confused and worried face before it's rocking backwards with one powerful punch. Did I do that? "Don's gone psycho!" Mikey says again as my body quickly follows the punch up with a knee and then a snap kick. Raphael stumbles backwards catching himself on the table and leveling a glare on my while wiping away some of the blood that dribbling from the corner of his mouth. Wait why is he stopping and slowly backing away from me?

"That trigger must've been on some kind of time delay!" I didn't know Mikey could wail. "Don's trying to kill me!"

"That's impossible Mikey," April -or anyone in the living room for that matter- obviously didn't just see me attack Raph. I think Mikey's right. Saka must've programmed me but didn't put anything down in his notes about. "Don would never try to hurt you."

"Actually April," Raph says finally stopping backing away from me. "I think he's right." Oh please tell me I didn't do what I think I did. I recognize the weight spinning around my fingers. I lifted Raphael's sais right off him? I catch the weapons in an offensive hold after they've spun there for a second. "Cause Don's definitely not acting like himself."


	25. Chapter 25: A Fight on Two Fronts

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Everyone thank Quoth the Raven for the great ideas in this fight scene. She really helped me a lot in bringing this all together._

Chapter Twenty Five: A Fight on Two Fronts

"What are you talking about Raph?" What is he talking about?! Exactly what he means Casey! I've completely flipped my lid and am currently menacing Raph with his own weapons. Okay, so menacing isn't quiet the right word I was looking for but it does the job. I'm standing here with Raph's sais holding them in a position that clearly means ill towards him. No wonder Raph backed away from me. If he had my bo and was acting aggressively towards me I would have backed away too…

"Just what I me-" I –well my body- suddenly lurches forward. Thank shell that Raph was keeping his eyes on me because my first attack was to try and punch the baton of the first sai through his head. He dodges to the right only to duck as my arm whips across his face. I'm not doing this Raph! You've got to believe me! I can't stop myself! It's like I'm watching a horror movie as the axe murderer.

"Donatello!"

"What the shell?!"

"My son! Enough!"

Trust me guys, if I could stop I would but… I can't. It's like my body and my mind are acting on two different levels. Kind of what I've been experiencing for the past couple of days except in reverse. Instead of not being able to access my memories now I can't access my mind. It's like there's a disconnect somewhere. Shell… I got to figure out a way to stop myself before I end up hurting someone.

My body follows Raph as he dodges backwards and off to the side. Would you cool it already and leave him alone? First Mikey and now Raph, who am I going to attack next? April? I hope I didn't just give my body any ideas. Raph continues his retreat but I can tell by the way his eyes are following the swipes that the sais in my hands are taking that he's waiting for his opening. I'm so glad I went after Raphael and not Mikey. Raphie knows how to read body language so well that he's pretty much mastered stealing weapons from his adversaries. I hope he steals these things away from me before I hurt someone.

"Mikey! Casey! Flank him! Try and p-"

"I got it, Leo." Raphael growls as he ducks under one of my swings and comes up past my defenses. Oh shell, this is going to hurt isn't it Raph? Effortlessly, Raph twists the sai in my right hand free before clutching my wrist and spinning. This is one of those times that I wished I weighted more because I have a feeling that Raph is doing a hammer throw with me standing in as the hammer. I feel dizzy. Wait! Don't let go!

My body rolls with the throw. I can see what Raphael was trying to do. He was hoping that his attempt at imitating a washing machine's spin cycle would make me drop his extra sai. He was probably hoping that the landing would knock some sense into me or knock the breath out of me too. I wish it had done something to me but my body barely seems winded even with the hard hit to the shoulder. In fact it didn't even hurt… now I'm just rolling towards the wall.

Okay, I didn't expect my body to do that. As I'm rolling onto my front I suddenly roll all of my weight onto my arm and push myself up. At least now my head won't bounce off the wall first. Instead I just plant my feet… and do a back flip off the wall?! Raph looks startled but that's the only glimpse I get of him before I find myself with a pleasant view of the wall as I swing my legs overhead to maintain my balance. I threw the sai at him when I was upside down. Is he alright? I wish I could let out a sigh of relief because that was definitely the sound of metal striking metal. He must have used the sai he took from me to deflect that sai that I had just thrown at him. What a relief.

And I'm still flipping backwards. Why would I be doi- SHELL! RAPH! I just came out of the flips in time to catch Raph right in the chest with the blade of my foot. If he was a human I could have cracked his sternum but he's lucky that his plastron took the brunt of the hit. The worst thing he'll have in some bruising on the chest. Though he wasn't seriously hurt he was forced to stumble backwards trying to maintain his balance. It looks like my body has decided to keep after him too. It lands takes a step after him and punches him hard enough that –coupled with his already compromised balance- sends him tripping over his own feet. There's a loud crash as Raph takes out one of the chairs at the table and crushes it under his weight.

I don't even get a chance to see if he's alright or at least moving before I'm tackled by two hundred and fifty pounds of angry human. "Shell, Don! Cut it out!" I wish I could argue with you right now Casey cause that would be a major improvement in my current situation. He forces me backwards so that I'm pinned against his body and wall. Casey yells over his shoulder while keeping his eyes on me, "Now would someone tell me what's going on?! I thought that the notes said Don wasn't programmed!"

"He shouldn't be. Saka's notes never mention anything about implanting the subliminal messages into Donatello's mind. All it had was a list of the most common words we were likely to say after rescuing him and what he was going to pick." Don't blame yourself April. I should have checked the notes myself before turning it over to you. Maybe I could've picked something up that you didn't notice that would have clued me in on the fact that I was programmed.

Shell my body is moving again. It's not like it can move much with Casey bodily pinning me to the wall but my body is able to bring up my leg enough to slam the heel of my foot down on his instep hard enough that he steps back with a pained grunt. That's all I would need even if I wasn't drugged out of my mind to take someone down and it looks like that is exactly what my body has decided that it has to do with a quick punch across the face followed by an elbow to the face with that same arm causing Casey to fall a few more steps away from me. Instead of going after him my body turns and uses the wall to jump up and plants its foot on it. Shell, a quick push off the wall is all I need to knock Casey over. I can hear him on the ground behind me moaning slightly. I would be moaning to if I was just run over by one hundred eighty pounds of turtle too.

Again my body refuses to turn and check on him and I kind of agree with it. I would know that look on Leo's face anywhere. "Mikey, you and April try and find something to take him down with without hurting him. I'll keep him busy until you're ready." He doesn't wait for a response before he hurtles the couch and charges me. No! Don't charge him too, you stupid body! If Leo can wipe the floor with me in practice I don't want to know what he'll do to me now that I've knocked both Casey and Raph for a loop.

Right before we meet my body plants its foot catches one of his out stretched wrists and –before he can react- I've just sent him for a fast yet short trip into the wall. At least he was able to twist over enough so that his shell hit the wall instead of his head but landing with all his weight on his shoulders when he fell on the ground probably didn't feel good either. My body suddenly turns and bolts across the room. I have to admit I'm glad it didn't go after Master Splinter but I don't like the fact that it's going after Mikey again. "Michelangelo!" Thank you for warning him Sensei. I didn't want to get the drop on him.

He turns in time for me to slam him into the table near my lab and computer station. He must have been looking for something on it for April who is standing on the opposite side looking horrified. "Mikey!" Don't worry he's alright for now April. I've got to think of a way to over ride this programming. There has to be something I can do to make me not try and kill everyone. The only question is what?

Mikey is no slouch when it comes to hand to hand fighting, where Mikey lacks the strength that Raph has and the finesse that Leo has, he makes up for it in his shear speed. Before I realize his foot has hooked behind my ankle, I'm over on my shell looking up at the ceiling. I really need to get him to show me how he does it. I think it has to do all that sugar he's always eating. Oof! Mikey, you really need to cut back on all those pizzas. With Mikey's full weigh on my stomach it's going to be hard for my body to get him off to continue fighting. Good. Now stop fighting him arms and just let him pin me!

"Don! Come on! Wake up! This isn't you, bro!" I totally agree with you Mikey. I would never do something like this. Ever. Okay, I need to calm down. Maybe with meditation I can come myself down enough to take control again. I need to focus… just ignore what's happening… forget the fact that my body is still fighting against Mikey… just breath in… and out… relax… relax…

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

Mikey!? I hurt him! Or at least my body did! Shell, he has to be hurt badly for him to be hollering like that. I guess it wasn't a good idea to start meditating. All it did was just let my body really go nuts. I'm up again… somehow… Mikey's clutching at his arm and backing away. It looks like he's looking for a pressure point by the way he's pressing in different places along his shoulder. It's a little more to the left, Mikey. I must've used that to numb his entire arm. That explains the yowl. That hurts. He's backing away from me while I advance on him and I can hear Raphael getting up and growling about something. Leo and Casey are bound to be coming out of their shock soon too. Come on, guys. I don't know if Mikey can take me on with one arm, especially with one of his nunchaku's spinning in my hand.

I guess I should be grateful that I suck at using nunchaku's, that'll give Mikey more of a chance to beat me. I catch movement out of the corner of my eye. Yes, pinned between Raph and Mikey should give them enough of an advantage to knock me down and pin me down again. What was that tap? It felt like someone just tapped me on the shoulder. My head turns from Mikey momentarily to the dart sticking out of my arm before I find myself glaring over at April. Oh shell, April… don't you even think of it, body. Leave her alone.

I really have to figure out a way to stop all of this craziness. There's got to be something… a loop hole… or an over ride command… at this point anything that'll stop me from seriously hurting someone would be welcomed. Right now all I've been able to gather is that detaching myself from the situation just makes me fight more aggressively. That means that my consciousness has some affect on my fighting. Maybe I can control my ferocity? I just wish I could control who I was attacking because I really don't like how I seem to be focusing on April right now. I think you have every right to look worried April… "Donnie… don't you dare." I don't dare Mikey but you might want to grab me or do something to get my attention away from her.

"DONATELLO!!!" SHELL! Come on Mikey! You're faster than me! Stop yelling and tackle me to the floor before I reach her! My body easily flips over most of the table but it plants its hand on the edge and swings my legs around. Right at April's head. She drops the small dart gun that she had used to hit me with the tranquilizer dart and brings up her arms allowing them to take the brunt of the hit. Thank shell Master Splinter has been teaching her ninjitsu. She's still knocked backwards from the hit but at least I didn't actually hit her face. My body's still twisting around with the force of the hit before planting its feet on the table and launching itself after a stumbling April. I can just barely feel the brush of fingers on my ankle. Mikey must've been trying to pull me back and away from her.

My hands clutch at her shoulders as she falls backwards. I've got to do something before I hurt her! She's scared. I'm scared. Now what's going to happen? She grabs my shoulders and I can feel her put her foot on my stomach as she falls. Good idea, April, that'll give you some breathing room. Just before she hits she uses her foot and the grip on my shoulders to flip me easily over her head. Text book job. Of course barely two years of ninjitsu practice doesn't even compare to my almost eighteen years of practice. I really wish it did… My body rolls with the throw and gathers its feet under me and turns back towards April who has barely even sat up. A quick flip over her head and now Mikey is between April and me. He still doesn't seem to be able to use his left arm right, I hope that there isn't any permanent nerve damage.

My body doesn't even get to take three steps towards them before something is bouncing off the side of my head. What the shell was that? Whatever it was it had enough force to make me twist my head to the side but not enough to knock me out. Wait, if I was knocked out would my body keep fighting? Umm… hopefully I don't get knocked out. I don't want to know what I would do to the guys. Especially with what I did to Mikey in less than thirty seconds. My head twists back towards where the whatever-it-was was thrown from and I catch a glimpse of scarlet red before me feet are taken right out from under me.

I guess I should be glad Master Splinter has joined in the fight but somehow I doubt I'll be glad later.

My shell hits the ground hard but with a quick snap of my legs I'm up almost immediately and turning to the red whirlwind that is my Sensei. No, you don't want to fight him. Bad body! Oh shell… Master… I'm sorry…

"Michelangelo! Stay back!" Yeah, stay back where I can't hurt you. I rather not watch myself break your collar bone. Or break any bone for that matter. I'll just sit back and watch my body get totally trashed by a ninja master who has taught me everything I know. Is it even possible for my body to win this fight? I doubt it…

Master Splinter easily deflects two punches and steps around me to dodge the third. My body drops down and attempts to take his leg out from under him which he just jumps over. I wonder if my body can get frustrated with not hitting him. What the?! I haven't even come out of the kick yet and my body is twisting up and around back at Master Splinter's side. He quickly blocks it but the force of the kick throws him back towards the entertainment center. He lands and quickly stands on his feet as I spin a circle on my shell and stand up in an offensive position.

"Dude…" I agree Mikey. I've never done that before. I've seen Mikey do it but I've never done it before.

"Donatello." I didn't even realize that I had turned towards Mikey or April again. Judging by how Splinter is holding his hand up he wants them to stay still and quiet. "I know that you can hear me, my son." He does? How does he know that? "You have to fight this. This is not who you are. Focus on the sound of my voice. Use it to help you fight against what you have been forced to become."

I wish I could Sensei but it's like I'm having an out of body experience right now. My body suddenly charges him and I can tell by the frown on his face that Master Splinter was hoping to not do what he is about to do. I just hope my body can land right without hurting me too badly. Just before I reach him he steps out of the way and grabs the wrist with which I was going to try and punch him. Oh joy, this could hurt… just like what I did to Leo earlier –but I swear ten times faster- Master Splinter throws me into the back of the recliner. Up and over and oof… I just landed on my shoulders in the seat of the recliner and now I'm slowly falling off the seat and onto the floor. This bites…

My body gets back to its feet and heads straight for Master Splinter. Umm… Sensei? I know you can easily take me out but I would rather you were ready to defend yourself rather than tuck your hands behind your back. Please, I don't want to hur- Whoa! Two pairs of hands suddenly grab at my shoulders and wrists pulling me backwards. Leo and Raph keep my arms straight as they force me to kneel on the floor. Good, there's no way I'm going to be able to strong arm both of them into letting me go.

Master Splinter watches me strain against them for a moment before walking quickly over to Mikey and looking at his arm. His fingers move quickly over his shoulder before he says, "Breath deeply… and release." As Mikey exhales, Splinter forces his shoulder back, rolls it upwards and than pushes it back again. Mikey grunts slightly but as Splinter steps away I watch as Mkey flexes his arm to gently test to make sure it's working right.

"Thanks, Sensei!"

"Babe? Are you okay?" Casey asks April as he helps her to stand. She's looking a little shaky and pale on her feet. I bet she didn't realize that my body would even think of attacking her. During that fight, every time I was attacked by someone new that person or turtle became the focus of my attacks. My body is reacting to the largest threat to its self.

"I'm alright Casey." April takes several calming breathes before looking over at me with a mixture of regret and fear on her face. Now that is a weird looking coming from April. I didn't think I could ever do anything that would make her afraid of me. Fearful for me; yes. Afraid of me; not so much. "This is all my fault."

"No it's not." Mikey's just watching me with sad eyes as I struggle and strain. "You said yourself that the notes didn't say anything about him being programmed."

"Besides, there's no telling when he would have gone off his rocker if you hadn't said those words." Raph you make me feel so weak. Here my body is trying to break your grip and you barely sound like you're winded. Thanks a lot…

"We can figure out how this happened after we get him back to normal." There's Leo for you, always focusing everyone at the problem at hand. At least I can hear a slight strain in his voice, I don't feel quite so weak now. "What did you hit him with April?"

"A tranquilizer. It hasn't seemed to do anything to him so there must be some kind of drug inhibitor in his system preventing him from being affected."

"Is there even such a thing?" Honestly, Mikey I have no clue.

"It might have been from that coating…" April trails off before turning back to the table where she's been working for the past few days non stop. And she's always worried about me overworking myself…

"Casey, go get some rope."

"Why the shell do you want rope, Leo?"

"Why do you think, Raph? If drugs won't work on him we can't sedate him and the two of us can't hold him still forever. We need an affective way to restrain him to keep him from hurting himself or anyone else."

"He doesn't seem to interested in our welfare," stop whining Casey. I don't think that there is anything I can do to stop this.

"That's not true Mister Jones." Master Splinter's staring at me. At least he doesn't look mad at me for trying to kill everyone and attack him –shell I don't even want to think of what he would do to me if I had attacked him when I wasn't drugged- he looks more like the respective Father and Sensei I've seen sitting in his room meditating before an important conversation with one of us. He's focused which, hopefully, is a good thing. "Though he may appear no more than a vicious killer, if you watch his eyes you can see how scared and lost he is." Talk about nailing it right on the head. "We need to help him fight this and show him that he has nothing to fear from us or for us. Relax, my son. You're safe." I wish it could be that easy Master…

"Besides, Don's bleeding everywhere and he doesn't even seem to have noticed." You're right Mikey. Now that I'm thinking about it my right hand and arm have been bleeding for awhile. I must have really cut it up bad when I punched the dishes in the sink.

"Here's the rope, Leo. Now how are we going to do this? I doubt that he's just going to let us tie him up without some kind of a fight." I have to agree with you Casey. The moment my body gets even so much as an inch of lee way it's going to try and get away from you. Shell, Casey, don't come UP FROM BEHI-

Too late.

My foot lashes out, causing me to tip forward and pull both Leo and Raph slightly off balance. My foot catches Casey in the ankle and sends him crashing into Raph which causes both of them to end up on the floor in a twisted pile of limbs. With my hand now free my body uses it and my leg to surge upwards against a startled Leo. That 'thunk' sounded like it had to hurt. I think Leo's chin just bounced off my shell. Crud! Mikey, Splinter one of you better get over here! Leo's looking kind of spaced out and now is NOT a good time for this!

"LEO! LOOK OUT!" The comprehension of what just happened seems to wake him from his daze just as his katana gives a faint ring as it leaves his sheath. DUCK LEO! He does, quickly twisting to the side and ducking his head down to avoid me almost decapitating him. He retreats past the coffee table, twisting and turning to avoid the swipes I'm taking at him. At least he's leading me away from where Casey and Raph are dog piled but that's probably the reason why he's going this way. Less people for me to stab or slash at.

Leo! Don't cut it so close! I nearly had a heart attack! And now I'm really going to be in trouble. I just slashed the back of Master Splinter's favorite recliner. I guess it's better than Leo's stomach but I'm so going to pay for that one. At least now Leo's out in the open between the half pipe and the arcade games. He'll have more room to maneuver now.

"Don, give me back my sword." Leo's using his leader voice. He really doesn't like it when someone –anyone for that matter- messes with his swords. Especially if that someone is trying to attack him with them. "Mikey, stay back." Yes, please stay out of this Mikey. The last thing I would want to do is stab you with his sword. "You too Raph." Why would he have Raph stay out of this? Sais are designed specifically to disarm sword wielders. Is Leo pulling his big brother routine to keep the- oh… okay… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead… I'm dead…

Even with only one sword Leo can kick my shell from here to Denver and back. The only comfort is that he's holding the sword backwards so that the dull edge of the blade runs up along the back of his arm. That's not a very good stance for any kind of offensive fighting. It's better suited for defense. Not that that is making me feel at all better right now. Stop spinning that sword around, you stupid body! I do not want to carve my brother up with his own sword!

Why the shell won't you listen to me?! You're my body! The ringing of steel on steel is painfully loud. I bet if I could feel what is happening my arm would be vibrating painfully right about now. I wish I could feel anything right now. With my mind and body completely separated from each other being able to feel anything –even pain- would mean that the drug is beginning to wear off. And with the drug wearing off I might be able to take control again. Then all this craziness would be done with. I should have read through all of Saka's notes before turning it over to April. There has to be some way to stop me.

At least I'm fighting Leo, this should be easy for him. I'm better at using a katana than sais or nunchakus but I pale in comparison to Leonardo's skills. I'm just glad that my body doesn't seem to be taking ideas from my mind. I know what Leo is planning. He's going to disarm me then Raph and Mikey are going to over power me. Both of them weigh more than I do and, judging by how Leo is fighting, he's trying to keep me with my back to them so that when they jump on me I'll land on my front. It'll be easy after that for those two to pin my arms and legs down. And Raph and Mikey just handed their weapons over to Casey. Good. My body won't have any weapons to grab for.

Leo's finally had to turn his katana around so that he is holding it right again. I'm not at all surprised. This entire time I've been fighting him with both my hands on the hilt of the katana. I may not be strong but using both of my hands gives me the added strength of both arms. Leo's still fighting defensively, watching my movements as I attack him. One thing is for sure, I'm not fighting like me. I'm more of the defensive fighter -a manipulator as Sensei calls it- especially in single combat. I'm the one who fights defensively until I've moved my opponent into a situation where he's at the disadvantage. I usually don't attack all out like this. I just hope Leo uses it to his advantage and takes a page from my book.

We've moved over to the half pipe during the fight so far and now –finally- Leo takes a swipe at me. It doesn't actually connect. It was a feint that my body fell for. It goes to block only to take a palm strike to the shoulder, making one of my hands fly off the handle as my balance is compromised. Good job Leo. Now knock the sword out of my hand before I can recover and- Crud! No, I didn't expect that either Leo. "Don!" Yeah I'm worried to now Mikey. I just grabbed Leo's blade with my palm. As if my right arm was bleeding enough. Leo's free hand grabs the hilt of the sword I'm holding to prevent me from trying to swing at him and he wrenches it free from my grasp. At least he let go of the blade I'm clutching in my right hand. If he had tried to pull that free to he would have probably sliced through part –if not most of- the bone. I'm pretty sure most of my palm is laid open.

Leo leaps back, giving both of us some breathing room as by body takes the blade from my poor hand. Judging by the extent of blood coming from my arm right now, if they don't do something soon I'll just collapse from blood for them. I hope that doesn't happen. I would much rather keep the recovery time for all this as minimal as possible. As it is, my right hand and forearm is going to need stitches and possibly a month of physical therapy before I can use it right again.

My body took the breathing room given to it and backed up so that my shell lightly scrapes against the supports on one up ramps of the half pipe. Leo's approaching slowly as he waits to see what I'll do. Come on, I'm not that hard to beat. Just come in here and take the sword from me before I really hurt someone. Or get hurt. Actually, I'd rather get hurt then hurt someone. Why is my body glancing back at the half pipe? This is the second time it's glanced at it. I hope it's not planning anything. Now I'm shifting more to the left. Oh no. I know what its doing. Leo, don't fall for it. Don't fall for it. Just ignore it. I'll be fine. Oh, who am I kidding? Leo's going to fall for it.

My body stops shifting, stands up calmly and slams the pommel of the katana hard into one of the supports of the half pipe.

And there goes the brace on the main support.

I'm going to have to reengineer the half pipe later. If there is a later for me. Combined with the extra hard hits from Mikey's high jumps earlier, the hard hit to the support was enough to bring down the entire support structure. I'd been meaning to reinforce the half pipe for over a year now. If I had known I was going to try and drop the half pipe on my own head I would have done it a long time ago. Of course I'm not the only one to be buried in plywood, three-by-fours and two-by-fours. Leo's just too protective for his own good sometimes.

The minute the half pipe began to fall, Leo charge forward. Even with the pipe collapsing down towards me my body stood stubbornly still, watching Leo's approach. It was hoping to be able to kill Leo who was too worried about my safety to worry about his own. I swung, Leo blocked it and then jumped on top of me, forcing me down and covering me with his own body to protect me as the pipe fell on his shell.

"LEO! DON!"

"Aw Shell!"

Stop yelling and dig us out of here! Leo hasn't even tried to move since the structure fell on us. That's not a good sign. He covered most of me so while I wasn't knocked out I most definitely am pinned. I can hear planks being thrown aside as they begin to dig us out. Wait… if they uncover us I won't be pinned down anymore. And I still have Leo's katana. Crud. They probably don't even think I'm still awake. My body is going to have the element of surprise in this attack. Please, guys notice what I'm about to do. Please…

Leo is suddenly hauled off me and the sword that was pinned, lashes out and nearly catches Casey in the side of the head. Casey, I don't care how surprised you are, April's here and that is definitely not a word to be said around a lady. I'm up on my feet even as he falls backwards and turn with the sword swinging at Leo who's being cradled by Mikey. Good thing that there was a sai there to stop the arc. Raph tries to pin the blade between both of his sais but my body pulls it away and I flip backwards to put some distance between the two of us. Raph follows me. My body is barely upright before it's being forced to block several swipes designed to keep me off balanced. As my body twists and blocks I can see Master Splinter kneeling down next to Leo who Casey and Mikey have pulled out of the rumble and laid down on the floor. Come on guys, gang up and me and stop me. Good, here they come.

My body spins away from Raph only to get a right hook across the face from Casey. That's going to bruise. Before I can bring the sword around to try and stab him, it's nearly yanked out of my grasp by a nunchaku. My body is jerked towards Mikey but a quick back kick hits Casey as I yank the sword from the chains. My body is forced to block Raph instead of trying to hit Mikey somehow. I stumble to the side. Good, I'm stumbling. Maybe I'm finally getting tired from all this fighting.

"Raph, we need a plan. Leo and Don are the ones that always come up with a plan. So who is going to come up with a plan?" Yeah and neither of us are in any condition to help you come up with a plan Mikey. I just hope Leo's going to be okay. The was a lot of solid stuff to land on someone. Even if that someone has the added protection of a shell. I shouldn't worry too much about Leo, Master Splinter is with him. He should be fine. I can just barely see them past Raph and Mikey's shoulders. Leo's moving. Not a lot but he's moving.

"We take him down!"

"Good idea, idiot," Yeah good idea, Casey. What else do you think they're trying to do? "I know a way to take him down but first let's try to pin him down after we get that butter knife away from him." Yes, Raph that would be a great idea especially the pinning down part cause I know what you mean and I kind of like being left intact. Though, if it's between life and death go ahead a hamstring me. I'll recover eventually. I just won't be able to walk for awhile. A very long while. And I don't even want to think of what you'll have to go through to get a doctor to try and repair them. "Meathead, stay back till we get that sword from him. Mikey, rush him."

They charge, Mikey just a step or two in front of Raph. My body brandishes the sword again, holding it with both hands. Its have trouble holding onto the sword with the hand that is all sliced up. I'm not looking forward to recovering from this but at least it'll help Mikey and Raph get the sword from me. My body twists out of the way of one of Mikey's nunchakus only block Raphael's sais. Raph brings the second sai around and tries to flip the katana from my grasp. I didn't realize I was holding this sword that tight, either that or I have leverage on my side. I'm able to toss the sais away, turning Raph away from me as he struggles to keep his weapons. As I turn with the spin, my foot catches Mikey in what feels like the stomach. I wish I wasn't spinning around so fas- RAPH! Shell! He's not turned around yet, the sword is going to hit him in the back of the neck!

_Do not harm your brothers!_

Thank shell. Thank God. Thank whoever for letting me take control for that brief second. It wasn't much but I was able to change the direction of the katana. It was just enough that instead of striking Raph in the back of the neck it cut into his shell. He'll have a new slash in it but at least he will still have his head attached to his body. I had enough force in that swing to decapitated him. Raph grunts as the sword hits his shell but quickly turns, pulling the blade from my hand as it stays wedged into his shell. My body just pauses for a second as if it could believe it just lost its weapon. It's then jumping to try and avoid Casey tackling it that instead of sending the two of us to the floor, it sends me flying and then rolling into the computer nook where I take out the shelf where I keep some my servers.

"Shell, Casey, you didn't have to hit him that hard." No he really didn't Mikey and if he's cracked the processor in that tower I'm going to make him buy me a new one. It's hard enough as it is to find one of those that work right.

"I didn't mean to. He jumped. Are you alright Raph?"

"Get this sword outta my shell. Mikey, stay away from him. He's faked unconsciousness once." Raph's right. I'm just laying here half buried under the shelf and computer components. Well that's not entirely true, I'm slowly getting up. Maybe my body has finally had enough. Or I could be reaching for that and trying to draw them off guard. Why the shell is that down here anyways? I thought I hid it behind the door in the workshop. Oh no… That's right. I moved it when we were cleaning out the place shortly after Leo got back from South America because I didn't want them to find it. It's not like Master Splinter or anyone got this for me. I bought it off line a while back just incase I needed to use it for whatever reason. And ever since I saw that Elite use it I wanted one. What a time to remember it.

"He's barely able to stand Raph. I can get him." No you can't Mikey. You don't know what I've got in my hands. It's to dark in here for you to see it well too. Why did I have to get it in black? "You just get something to wrap around his arm and han- EEKKKK!" Thank shell, you blocked that. Your reflexes are as good as ever Mikey. Now get the shell away from me!

"What is that?!" What's it look like Casey?!

"A naginata!" Yeah, a solid black one with a very simple but very sharp blade. It's a good thing that Mikey's faced Kluh and beat him. Twice. At least now he knows how to deal with someone fighting with one. And this one only has one bladed end not two. Another bonus. I still should have shown or at least told someone about it. I've been such an idiot keeping this thing hidden from them. I just hope they have a way of getting this away from me without getting hurt. I won't forgive myself if that happens. "Go and get a manrikigusaris! There's one on the bench in the dojo!" Good idea, Raph. Both you and Mikey are severely hampered when facing something like a naginata. Neither the sais or the nunchakus are effective against a long reaching weapon like this one. With a manrikigusaris you should be able to yank the naginata out of my hands. Hopefully.

While Casey runs out of the room to get Raph his 'weighted chains' as Casey would call them, Raph charges into the fight between me and Mikey. Well it's not as much of a fight. It's more like Mikey jumping, twisting, and generally dodging all of the swings, stabs and thrusts that I'm throwing at him. He's tucked away one of his nunchakus into his belt and is holding the other with both hands defensively. Raph tries to come up behind me only to get the end of the niginata in the stomach. That's got to hurt. Mikey doesn't give my body a chance to turn around and attack Raph. He catches the end of the blade and pulls on it. The nunchaku can't hold onto the smooth blade but it's enough to make me keep after him. He jumps backwards to avoid another attack from me and lands onto of the work table. Where'd April go anyways? I thought she was right here.

Mikey abandons the table as I come at him again. I can hear Raph huffing from behind me. I don't think he's even up yet. I must've caught him in the solar plexus. It's going to take him a while to get up if that's the case. He's probably having trouble breathing. Why is my body attacking a stool? The blade slides smoothly between the rungs and my body throws the stool at Mikey who takes the stool right in the face. Ouch, I hate being his dentist sometimes. No. Stay away from him! Stupid body, leave my little brother alone!

"Michelangelo!" Shell, Sensei get over here! Do something! At least Leo's sitting up now but who cares about that! My body flips the naginata over the back of its hand before raising it in a killing strike. Come on Mikey, roll over onto your stomach. Do something, don't just blink up at me. Get out of the way.

What was that? Is that a dart in my arm? My body looks over its shoulder to see April standing in the doorway to my workshop loading another dart into that dart gun she had earlier. That wasn't a very good idea April. Don't you remember what happened last time you did that? Your timings good but there is no way you can beat me in a fight. She lifts the gun again and my body turns and charges her, spinning the naginata in one hand. "APRIL!!!" Please no. There's no one between her and I to stop me. Instead of killing Mikey I'm going to kill her instead. Shell… Just stop it with the darts April. They don't work on me rememb-

Did my foot just miss the floor?

I land hard, skimming across the floor before my body starts to roll with my forward momentum. The naginata fell out of my hand awhile back thankfully otherwise I might have gotten a few good nicks in as I roll across the floor. I come to a stop maybe six feet from April on my side. I'm twitching slightly. Trembling actually. It's like I'm trying to move but can't. What the shell did she hit me with and why didn't she hit me with it sooner?

"April? What did you do?" It's good to hear Leo's voice again. It doesn't sound slurred and the pitch is even so that rules out a concussion.

"Hey Raph I got the thingy an… What did I miss?" A lot, Casey. A lot.

"It's a fail safe," April's voice is getting closer. Is she actually going to just walk up to me? What if I'm faking it again or something? Wait, am I faking it or is this real. My body doesn't seem able to move… "Saka wasn't about to turn Donnie into an assassin without some way of stopping him in case Don ever went on a rampage in the lab. Tranquilizers won't work on him but a powerful muscle relaxant will." Oh, that makes sense. I'm so glad that she figured that out. It must have been in the notebook somewhere. "He won't be able to move for a while."

April rolls me onto my shell. Through half lidded eyes I watch as she ties a tourniquet on my bicep to slow down the bleeding on my lower arm and hand. She then presses her fingers to my neck taking my pulse. It's over. I don't care if I have to live on muscle relaxants for the rest of my life. I'm not putting my family through this again. Or myself for that matter. "So is he cured?"

"I don't know Leo. I just found the way to stop him by flipping through Saka's notes. I'll have to read them more in depth until I can say that for sure."

"Then we'll just keep him restrained." Raph comes into my swimming vision and gently arranges me so I don't look quiet like a puppet with its strings cut. "There's a table in med bay with straps on it that can hold him down."

"By the looks of his arm he needs to be in there." I could agree more, Mikey. I'm just glad that I can't feel anything. I'm pretty sure that my arm is going to be hurting for a while.

"Until such a time that we know he has recovered from this incident, no one is to so much as utter either of the command words around him and he is to remain restrained at all times. I will also remain away from him so that there is no chance he might regress into the assassin that he was." That's really not fair to you Master Splinter. You're banning yourself from seeing me?

"I don't think you've got to go that far Splinter. Just put a blindfold on him." Being unable to move and see? This is going to suck but Casey does have a point. My inner assassin is activated by seeing Master Splinter. Take away my sight and that should help me to not relapse or whatever.

Raph picks me up, cradling me to his chest as he turns to the door. "I'll read the notes and see if I can find something about the drugs duration or cure. As long as the chemical properties of the drug used on Don are listed I should be able to find an antidote." That's music to my ears April. And if you take six or seven months to figure it out, fine with me. Just as long as I don't do this again I don't care how long it takes. I can wait.


	26. Chapter 26: The Last Piece

Picking Up the Pieces

_Disclaimer: I wish they were mine. Sniffle._

_Okay… I think that three and a half months is a long enough time to be MIA from the server. It's time I got my 'shell' in gear and got back to work._

_And if anyone is really curious on where I've been let's just say 'Life' and leave it at that._

_So, sorry for the delay in this chapter everyone, hopefully all_ _29,000+ words of it will be worth the wait._

_And thanks to everyone who either pm, emailed or pestered me online, it's nice to know you all care about my well being and my stories enough to fill my inbox almost everyday with mail of some shape or form._

_And special thanks to Miles333, Storm Princess, and Quote the Raven for all the ideas and thoughts you gave me._

Chapter Twenty Six: The Last Piece

W-Where…

Oh shell, not again…

This is starting to become a very bad habit.

I've been unconscious so much in the past week that I must have set some kind of record. I wonder if I'm going to get some kind of reward. A vacation would be nice. Yes, a nice long vacation with my family…with no time, space, or dimension travel…an ordinary, nothing special about it, vacation. And there better not be any kind of mad scientist/doctor nearby, because I think I'd beat him to a pulp just on principle.

Before I start beating on random doctors and scientists, I should see if it's possible for me to move in the very least. Judging by the dulled pain in my arm and hand, Raph finished up the stitches he was working on after he brought me in here. My shoulder aches from where that arrow hit me as I was ambushed in the dark by Foot ninjas, but it's a good ache that means that the skin and muscle is healing. Thank shell that the arrowhead didn't pierce too deep or hit anything important. My ankle's been wrapped. I guess I hurt it kicking something…or someone. My ribs are a little tender again. I really haven't given them a chance to heal that much in the past week. And last but not least, my head feels like someone took a baseball to it. I bet the drugs are just as much to blame about it as the fight is.

Wow, this is going to be tough. I can understand –and I entirely agree- as to why I am strapped down on my shell and blindfolded, but that doesn't mean I like it. Talk about feeling exposed. Defenseless. I force myself to take a deep calming breath. I'm in the middle of the lair, there's no way anyone can get in here to get me. It's not like anyone could find the lair and I doubt my family will let someone just walk in here while I can't do anything. And even if someone did get in here, they would have to get past whoever is sitting next to me.

I can't help but flinch when a hand gently touches my shoulder. The hand is immediately pulled away, "Donnie? Are you awake?" At least I know I can still understand English. It would've been just my luck if I had lost it again.

"R-Raphie…" Why does my voice sound so horrible? It's barely above a whisper and it sounds like I've taken up eating rocks. I hope Raph at least had an idea of what I was trying to say.

"Easy Donnie. Let's get some water into you. That should help you talk better." Right now, anything that helps me to not sound like I swallowed a cross between a basset hound and a frog would be greatly appreciated, Raphael. And hurry up, please. The last thing I want is for Mikey to overhear me sounding like this. I won't be able to get him to clam up about it for weeks.

His hand gently tucks underneath the back of my head and he supports it as he presses the glass to my lips. He's only letting me have the barest of trickles. It's nice to know he remembered how easy it is for someone to choke when they are like this. Water has never tasted this good before. When was the last time I drank water? The soup broth can be considered water, but it did have a high salt content and I was out for a while. I'm probably a little more than a little dehydrated.

Either I've drained the glass or Raphie thinks I have had enough, cause he pulls it away from my lips. "Are you feeling better?"

Why is he keeping his voice so low? How late is it, anyways? "Yeah." Good, my voice sounds much better. Maybe Raph's being so quiet because my voice sounds so quiet. Nah, it's has to be something else. "Why is it so quiet?" It's never quiet here, unless something bad has happened. I suppose me flipping out and trying to kill everyone counts as bad…

"It's nearly five in the morning, brainiac." It's that late already? Or early, depending on how you look at it. Everyone has probably been in bed since, like, three. He sighs and the chair squeaks slightly as he sits down again. "It's really been a long night for everyone."

Yeah…that's an understatement. I still can't believe I tried to kill them. I don't care if there were subliminal messages or drugs involved, I should have been able to overpower it somehow. I love them; that has to equate to something. I should have been able to stop myself. I should've actively tried to do something rather than worrying about them reacting to what I was doing. If I had focused on ho-

"You know, I gave you water so you would talk to me, not so you'd stay quiet and overanalyze something."

I can't help but smile. "Sorry, Raph. I was just…I should've been able to stop myself. I should have been able to warn you somehow."

"Next you're going to tell me that you need to find how to bring about world peace, cure cancer, and get Mikey to give up the remote without having to wrestle him for it. You're only one turtle Don, don't get too big for your shell."

Usually, it's Leo or Mikey who grounds me back into reality, but coming from Raph seems to make it that much more potent. Maybe it's because he rarely does it that it's not half as expected for him to always reassure me. "I know, it's just-" He huffs at me. Yeah, I'm doing it again. Sorry, Raph. "Thanks, Raph."

He snorts. "Someone has to keep you sane." Do I detect a bit of amusement in his voice?

I know it wasn't his intentions to make me think back on what I did earlier tonight, but I can't help it. Technically, I really did go insane. It was so weird having my body act without any input from my mind. What kind of drug would do that to me? Saka had to have made it from scratch. I know there isn't a drug that powerful out on either the market or the black market. There is a wide assortment of amnesic drugs available to psychologist, maybe he combined several of those and somehow increased the half-life. How would someone go about doin-

"Don."

I can't help but smile at the annoyed growl that comes from Raph. "Sorry, I'm just trying to figure out what kind of drug could have turned me into a psychotic killer." That reminds me. "Hey, Raph?" He just grunts at me to continue. I'm so glad that he still has his standoffish attitude, despite what happened. If he became all caring and considerate, then I would worry about his mental health. "Is everyone going okay? How bad are they hurt?"

Raph's gone silent. I don't like it when that happens, what is he hiding from me? I'm just about to open my mouth to demand an answer, only to have Raph beat me to the punch. "Leo took a hard hit to the head, but other being knocked for loop, he'll live. Master Splinter has some bruising on his side, but I already checked for broken ribs and he's fine. Mikey shoulder was dislocated and the muscles around it are weak, but he should be fine in another day or two."

I dislocated Mikey's arm? No wonder he was having problems using it. He must have been using pressure points to try and block out the pain when we were in a standoff together. "And what about you? Don't hide anything, cause when I get off this table and I've found out you weren't taking care of yourself, you'll be strapped down for a week."

He chuckles under his breath. "I'm fine, brainiac. I just got a new ding in my shell and a couple of decent sized bruises."

And it could be some much more… "What about Casey and April?" He hasn't said anything about them yet.

"They're going to be fine. I told them to go to the hospital so-"

"WHAT?!!" I try and sit up, only to have the restraints across my chest and arms force me back down. I had enough upward momentum to really jerk myself hard against them and whatever the pain reliever the Raph used for my arm really wasn't that strong. I can't help but gasp at the pain that's flared up my arm. A chair is clattering to the floor and Raph's hands are on my shoulders pushing me back onto the mattress.

"Easy, Don! Easy! I wanted them to get x-rays just in case something was broken! Calm down!" Ow… More painkiller, please. I think I busted a stitch doing that. I can feel blood pooling under the heavy bandages encasing most of my lower arm. "Crud." I guess Raph's noticed the blood to.

"What's going on in here, Raph?" Leo's up?

"I should be asking you the same thing. I told you to get some sleep."

"You're not my doctor."

Oh good, they're fighting. Please don't worry about me or anything, you two. I'll just lay here and calmly bleed to death. "But I am, and if Raph is telling you to get rest, then so am I."

"So you're finally admitting to being a doctor?"

"Shut up, Raph." I swear Raph does things like this just to get me mad. It has never worked, though. All he does is manage to annoy me.

"How are you feeling, Donnie?" Leo's voice is steadily getting louder as he walks up to stand next to the bed. He's walking louder then normal, I guess that's so I can tell where he is and not freak out if he touches my arm. Raph's been purposely making noise too. That's considerate of them. He sets his palm on my shoulder as he says, "Are you comfortable enough?" I wonder if it's possible to roll your eyes at someone and have them notice if you're wearing a blindfold. How the shell does he think I feel? I'm strapped down to a bed wearing a blindfold. It's really disconcerting to have people hovering over you when you pinned like I am.

"How the shell do you think he feels?" I can hear the sarcasm in Raph's remark, but then again, he's always using sarcasm. "Hold him down for a minute, will ya? I'm going to grab the morphine."

Hold me down? Morphine? What the shell? Raph's hands leave my shoulders only after Leo's hands take over their positions. At least he's not pushing down to hard, that could hurt. "You really don't have to hold me down, Leo. I'm not going anywhere."

His thumbs begin to gently massage at the tension that I had built up in my shoulders at some point. I didn't even realize it was there. I wonder if this is a side affect of the drug. "I know you're not going anywhere, Don. It's just in case." Meaning it's just in case I flip out again and try killing people. At least this way I'll be hampered by the restraints long enough for them to pump me full of muscle relaxants. Hey, what is th-

Raph better not be doing what I think he's doing. "Don't you dare give me a shot of morphine, Raph."

"Why not? If one of us was a banged up as you were, you would've been pumping this stuff into us every chance you got."

Yeah, but I can deal with this minor pain with aspirin. I don't need any morphine, I feel just fine without it. "I don't need it and I'd rather you save it then waste it. Now put the syringe down." Why did Leo stop the impromptu massage session for a second?

I swear Raph made that poor IV stand shake for no reason. "Too late." Great, there goes a fairly large amount of morphine. Shell, it's hard enough as it is to get a hold of even a little bit of that stuff. I really need to look into manufacturing our own somehow. I can feel Raph's breath on the side of my head as he whispers into my ear in a very threatening tone. Actually, it sounds more like a stage whisper. "If you ever consider that giving morphine to you is a waste again, I'll personally shove that bo of yours in a very…awkward place."

Oh.

Yeah, that could hurt.

I open my mouth to say something back to him, but somehow I forgot it before I could say it. Leo's simple massage is so lulling and soothing. I forgot how fast it takes morphine to kick in. It may be a powerful pain reliever, but it tends to make me very…loopy. I moan as I let my head flop into my cheek and I stared listlessly off into the space behind my eye lids while Batman and Bugs Bunny start talking about something involving a flying cheeseburger and an elephant which works for a secret government agency that wants to steal all the coffee flavored ice cream in the world. I could really go for some coffee right now. A hand gently caresses my cheek as I lay there.

"It's alright, Donnie," Leo soothes. "Why don't you get some sleep, we'll wake you later."

That, Leo, is a very, very good idea.

…

"Hey, Donnie? Are you awake?"

No, Mikey. I died shortly after Raph gave me morphine and then left me to sleep it off in a drug induced stupor. Hey, do I smell coffee? "Yeah, I guess…"

"I'll take that as a 'yes, I'm awake and I'm in dire need of food'. I can practically hear your stomach growling from the kitchen, bro." I can hear him moving around near the left side of the bed. "So let's get something into you before your stomach revolts and eats you from the inside out."

"That's scientifically impossible, Mikey."

"Well, you've obviously never seen any of the Alien movies, dude. Okay, you're coming up." A muffled hum comes from underneath as the head of the bed is slowly lifted so that I'm in a reclined sitting position. There's a slight bounce on the mattress next to my leg. I guess that means Mikey's done with the remote. I really need to get after him for throwing things around like that but since he brought me coffee, I let it go this time.

"Technically in the Alien movies, it was the aliens 'hatching' that cause people's stomachs to explode. It really had nothing to do with the stomachs themselves exploding." What on earth is he doing? It sounds like he's trying to use the silverware and plates as a drum set.

"Why do you always have to be so technical? Besides, how do you know it's not their stomachs exploding? Did you do field research on those things? I didn't think so. And since you don't have a PhD in alienology, we'll just stick with the stomachs explode part. When you get the PhD, then you can lecture me in alien anatomy and reproduction." I can't help but chuckle at Mikey's antics. He would go and blow something way out of portion just to get my spirits up. "Now open wide so the airplane can get in a hangar." What? Hanger? Mikey's making a noise that sounds like an engine that has a blown tie rod crossed with one of Casey's farts after Raph makes that extra hot chili. Something bumps lightly against my lips and I jerk my head backwards and surprise. I really wasn't expecting that to happen. "Aww, come on, Donnie. You're supposed to open a hangar door for the airplane to land, dude. Don't you know anything about aircrafts?"

Considering I was the one to refurbish our helicopter and most of our other vehicles from scratch I'm pretty confident that I know something about aircraft. I don't bother saying that the Mikey, though. He's just trying to get him under my shell, anyways. I pull my head away and off to the side so I can talk without having whatever shoved into my open mouth. "Mind telling me what you are doing?"

"Well, I really can't take the restraints off and you really need to eat sometime soon, bro. This seems like the simplest solution." I can nearly hear the shrug in his voice. I wonder how long he's been thinking this over, or better yet when. Knowing Mikey, it was probably several minutes after I was brought in here and strapped down in the first place. No matter who is sick or hurt, Mikey is always trying to find a way to feed them. It probably has to do with his massive appetite. "So open the hangar doors, 'cause the USS muffin is inbound for the runway."

That gets me to raise an eye ridge at him. Since this is Mikey, it'll be best just to play along, to an extent anyways. If not, he'll find a way to force-feed me whatever he's trying to get me to eat. I've had that happen once and there is no way in shell I'm letting Mikey do that to me again. It's also why I never tell him where I keep the come-a-longs anymore. I open my mouth and am presently surprised when he pops a small piece of those coffee muffins I love so much. "Mmmm…Mikey, you didn't have to make me these." It's freshly out of the oven, warm and steamy just the way I love them. How early did he get up to make these?

"I know. I figured you could use a little cheering up. I can't imagine its fun being tied down to the bed like this." I open my mouth to say something else, but Mikey takes the opportunity to put another piece of muffin in my mouth. If I didn't know any better I'd say he's using the muffins to keep me from saying anything. "Okay, you ready for some coffee bro?" Coffee? He brought me coffee too? Well, I can smell it, so it's bound to be in the room. How does he expect me to drink coffee like this?

"Careful now, it's still a little hot." Thanks for the warning, Mikey, but I don't see how that's really going to help me any. I feel the rim of a cup press against my lips and very slowly it's tipped towards me. I try and brace myself for what I know is gonna be a very hot liquid coming into my mouth and down my throat. Actually, this coffee isn't that hot. It's more lukewarm, almost but not quite too cold to drink without tasting nasty. It's at this temperature that I usually guzzled down the rest of the cup. Like Raphael had done the night before, Mikey makes sure that I don't get too much coffee at once and choke on it. He's letting a little more then a trickle run down my throat.

Mikey finally pulls the cup away and asks, "Ready for some more muffins?"

Okay, Mikey's up to something. He has that tone in his voice that usually tells me that he blew something up, destroyed something, or cause general chaos and discord wherever he's been for the past twenty-four hours. I wish this blindfold were off so I give him my less-than-convinced look. That always gets him to tell you what he did at a given time. Since I can't give him the look, I'm going to have to settle with asking him verbally and frowning at him. That'll also help him to realize that I'm on to him. "Mikey," I said with a long-suffering sigh. "What did you do this time?"

"W-what do you mean?" Yep, I've caught him in the act. He's definitely sucking up to me for a reason. Oh shell, if he's gotten near the arc welder again...

"Mikey. What did you do?" I hate using my firm, commanding voice on him, but sometimes this is the only way to get him to fess up to something. This role of playing the serious, disciplinary older brother is better left to Raph or Leo. I hate it when I have to scold Mikey for anything. Except when he blows up the toaster…again.

He lets out a sigh and I know I've won. Now it's time to find out exactly what he did this time. I wait patiently for a moment and I can practically see Mikey shuffling from foot to foot. He always does that when he's either unsure or trying not to admit to being in trouble. I hope whatever he broke is easily fixable this time. "It's not what I did, it's what I shouldn't have done." I frowned at that sentence; what the shell is he talking about? "Donnie…Donnie, I'm sorry. I am so sorry. I never should have said those things to you. I-I knew they would upset you. You told me they would upset you and I just use that to get back at you because of some stupid argument about...about…I don't even remember what it was about. I never should have said those things to you."

What? Argument? Oh, that argument. Is he still blaming himself for my capture? I thought we took care of this already. Oh wait, no we didn't. We couldn't talk to each other then, so he hadn't understood what I was saying. I may have taken the blame from him, but he never apologized to me. I guess all this special treatment is just his way of trying to say he's sorry. "Mikey. You don't have to apologize to me. I under-"

"What do you mean, I don't have to apologize to you? I could've gotten you killed!" I bet anything that Mikey is standing up and waving his arm around for no apparent reason. He really over-exaggerates everything. "When I found the fight scene where the Foot must have caught you and saw your bag torn open, I knew it was my fault that you were caught. It was because of what I said that made you leave the lair that night."

"Mikey! Calm down! It's nothing like that! You didn't have anything to do with me leaving that night!" Hopefully that will calm him down enough so that he will listen to what I have to say. "I went to my lab and locked the door because of what you said. I tried drowning myself in my work like I usually do. The only problem was I was missing some parts that I needed to complete my current project. That's why I left the lair. Not because of what you said."

"But if I hadn't said those things then you would have gone to your lab, you wouldn't have started working on some project, you wouldn't have needed those parts and you wouldn't have left the lair that night. See, it is my fault. This entire mess was all because of me! What's it called…the monopoly effect or something?!"

Oh, Mikey. "The domino effect."

"Yeah, that! I pushed over the domino in that argument and that got you to leave the lair and get captured and have your brain liquidated by the Foot!"

Okay, he's not calming down yet. "Mikey, even if that argument had never happened I still would have noticed that I needed to make a run to the junkyard. And If I recall correctly, you and I weren't the only ones in that argument. Leo and Raph were just as bad as you were."

"But they didn't say what I said! They didn't say what made you storm out of the room!"

I can't help but feel like I'm talking to Leo. He's always the one to twist around your words so that he is the one at fault. He takes way too much blame on his shoulders and it seems that Mikey is copying that right now. I'm going to get nowhere with him arguing about this. He has it set his mind that it was his fault I was taken. I have to stop arguing over the details with him and get him to understand that I don't blame him anymore. I smile broadly and chuckle under my breath. I can practically feel the confusion radiating off him. "Mikey, do you know who you sound like right now?" I don't bother waiting for an answer, "You sound just like Leo would if he was apologizing to me. I'm going to tell you the exact same thing I'm going to tell him, and Raph, and Master Splinter, and April, and Casey. I'm going to tell you all the exact same thing. This was not your fault, this was my fault. I should have called for back-up sooner. I should have run away after the first wave. I let myself fall into that trap. The argument may have happened before this all started but it had nothing to do with my actions in the junkyard that night. So stop blaming yourself, because I'm not putting any blame on you."

"You should." He sounds so small right now, and I can still hear the fight in his voice. I can all but see his head hanging in despair and self-loathing. Here I thought that Raph was my most stubborn brother. Mikey's really prove me wrong about that today.

"In your eyes, maybe I should be, but as far as I'm concerned, you're already blaming yourself enough that I don't need to add anything to it. I forgive you, Mikey, so just let it go." He's quiet for a long time. The only way I still know he's in the room is that I can still hear him shifting back and forth. Please tell me he's not going to keep up this argument. It's getting to the point of being pointless. He is continuing to blame himself when no one else blames him. I wonder if he was older than me, would we act any different?

"Thanks, Donnie." I guess he's decided to not blame himself anymore. Thank shell. I don't think I could deal with an unhappy Mikey. I really want to think of how much worse that would be then happy Mikey. "You know you really shouldn't let people get off so easily. Especially when something like this happens." Is he trying to lecture me? When did he start turning into Leo? Are they twins or something and I just never noticed? Or did I end up in the twilight zone at some point? Great, now I'm starting to sound like Mikey. "Now come on, your muffins and coffee is starting to get cold. Open wide!" Somehow I know that this isn't over yet, but as Mikey begins to feed me more coffee muffin and sips of coffee, I know that it's slowly going to get better.

…

"Hey, Don." April's here? When did she show up? When did I fall asleep, is a better question. The last thing I remember was Mikey trying to explain to me how he was going to cook dinner tonight. He was complaining about the lack of groceries and options available to him. I think he said something about takeout, but deciding against that because his favorite pizza place had fallen under new management. Now he complains that the sauce tastes funny.

"April? When did you get here?" I ask, trying to collect my thoughts. I must've been asleep for a long time, I guess.

"I've been here for a while. Mikey said you fell asleep shortly after you were done with breakfast." Without pausing a beat, she answers my unasked question. "It's nearly noon right now. Mikey said that lunch be done in about an hour."

I must've been asleep most of the morning. "How much morphine did Raph give me?"

A deep chuckle sounds from the other side around. "Not enough to keep you out for most of the day, brainiac."

Raph's been here, too? Actually, there are a lot of people in here. I can sense them. If Raph and April are in here I doubt that whoever else is here is going to cause me harm. Still, I can't help but tense up. The hand on my good arm clenches into a fist and my other hand tightens against the end of splint as best as it can. I can feel my face pinch into a frown as the try to figure out who else is in the room with us.

"Easy, Donnie." Well, now I know Leo is in here too. I bet that Mikey, Splinter, and Casey are the other three people in here. "You're safe. And you're home."

Why would Leo say that? I feel a slight pull on the knot fixing the blindfold to my face and the next thing I know it's jerked off my head. I blink my eyes open in shock and close them just as quickly. It's too late. I know it's too late. Master Splinter was standing right at the end of the bed so the first thing I saw was him. Shell, what if my programming kicks in again? What the shell was Leo thinking? "Leo! What the shell-"

"I told him to do that, Donnie." April quickly cuts in, before I can really chew Leo out. "I've been running blood tests every hour since you were put to bed." That's a nice way to say strapped down and drugged. "The drug that Doctor Saka gave you was only designed to work once. The blood tests have been confirming that over the course of this morning. There is barely five percent of the drug left in your body right now. I highly doubt that that is enough to send you into assassin mode."

Five percent still means that there is a slim chance that it's possible to be a 'super assassin' again. Five percent is way too much for me. I open my eyes and fix April with a stern glare. "Five percent still means that there is a chance that I could revert back and try to kill everyone again. You can't completely trust Saka's notes. If he made a mistake about my physiology once, then there's a chance that he did it again. What kind of plan do you have in case I do flip out again?"

"The four of us hold you down while April pumps you full of muscle relaxants," Raph says with a shrug from where he's leaning nonchalantly against the wall behind April. I glance around the room; he's right. Leo, Raph, Mikey, and Casey are positioned so that if I tried to break free of the restraints each of them has an arm or leg that they can jump on almost instantly. The only one that would have to be very careful would be Raph; the hand he's in charge of restraining has the IV in it. I'm sure he chose it that way because he knows how much stress it takes to snap a needle and how gentle he has to be where the needle inserts into the back of my hand.

"So for now we're going to sit and wait for the next half-hour and see if you can into a deadly ninja assassin." How can Mikey sound excited about me trying to kill him?

"Between the time that you heard the words and saw Splinter and then tried to kill Mikey in the kitchen was about half an hour." April answers my question before I even have time to ask it. So now it's going to become a waiting game. If I don't try to kill someone or break free in the next thirty minutes, then I'm officially cured. This is gonna be longest thirty minutes of my life.

"And since we have the time, you're going to explain to us why the shell you decided to take on an entire ninja stronghold on your own." It figures Raph would want to know about that. I'm kind of surprised he didn't chew me out for this earlier. He pushed himself off the wall and points an accusing finger at me, "You could've been hurt worst then you were or killed. Why the shell didn't you take the time to wake one of us up?!"

I guess the easiest way out of this is going to be telling him the truth and hope he doesn't get too mad at me. I wish there was somewhere I could look without having to look at someone. Even though they haven't said anything, you can see the accusing look in their eyes. I sigh and look at the blanket covering my legs. Better get this over with now instead of later, "I didn't want Saka to get a hold of one of you. I didn't want any of you to go through what I went through. I just wanted to sneak in, find information about what he did to me, and seek out again. I wasn't planning on getting in a fight, I wasn't planning on getting caught, and I wasn't planning on needing to be rescued. All I wanted to do was get a general idea of the layout to make sure there was no way Saka could hurt you guys like he did me."

"Shell Donnie, that's it?" Raph looks like he just was told that the wrestling championship was canceled or least a good fight with the Dragons. "That's not a good excuse to take on the Foot like that!"

"He's right, Don." Great, now Leo's gonna lecture me, too? When does Leo need an excuse to lecture someone? "Even for a scouting trip, you should have at least told someone where you were going."

"Yeah. Whatever that alarm thingy was on the shell cells gave me a heart attack. You could've left a note for something a little more conventional."

I can't help but smile at Mikey while answering his statement. "At least it worked. I was hoping to be able to be home before anyone realized I was gone. I only had that backup alarm just in case I got caught."

"So you waited until the last second to call us! Shell Donnie, you can be such an idiot sometimes!"

"Actually, Raph, I called you a good fifteen minutes before you got there."

"I don't care if you called us two hours before that! You still shouldn't have gone by yourself!" Somehow I knew Raph was going to be upset by this. I wish he'd stop yelling now, he's starting to give me a headache. I can't even rub my temples to try and alleviate the pain.

"Raphael, lower your voice." It's a good thing that Master Splinter has my shell. Hopefully now Raph won't chew me out anymore. "Donatello." I guess its Master Splinter's turn to talk to me about this. "I am glad that you least had a way to contact us in case of an emergency. However, you shouldn't have gone alone like that. With your disability in communication, you're lucky that you weren't forced into a situation where you had to communicate with anyone."

Should I tell about my confrontation with Karai back in the lab? Or should I keep that entire episode to myself? I can't imagine Raph would like the fact that Saka almost caught me again. I'll keep this to myself for now, better to be safe than sorry, and avoid another earful. "Yes, I was very lucky. Everyone I ran into was more interested in fighting with me than talking to me." I can't help but catch the frown that passes over Leo's face. He knows I'm not telling them something, and judging by the look on Master Splinter's face he's suspicious too.

"So you got into a fight with everyone you ran into! Shell, that's almost as stupid as going out by yourself! And here I thought that by then you remembered everything about yourself! Obviously you didn't remember any of your training!" Raph has his arms thrown up in the air and has a look of utter exasperation etched upon his face. I think I've really worked on his last nerve.

"I didn't get into a fight with everyone, Raph. I only fought the battles that I had to in order to get out of there." I keep my voice level and calm like I usually do when Raph is throwing a temper tantrum. All he's trying to do is blow off some pent up frustration without punching anything. If yelling at me for this will help, then fine. He can yell away.

"Hey! If this is going to be ask Donnie twenty questions I want to know what was the first thing you remembered!" Okay, Mikey, that was about as subtle as a bomb going off. I never did understand how Mikey could completely redirect the conversation and not piss anyone off. Maybe because his questions confuse everyone for a few seconds, but never piss anyone off.

"Yeah, what was the first thing you remember anyways?" And somehow when Casey's in the room with him, Mikey's conversation redirection seems to flow into the general conversation without a single hitch. Sometimes I wonder if Casey's a better friend for Raph or Mikey. Well, Casey's a good friend for all of us, even if he complains I talk circles around him.

I look down at the blanket still covering my legs and think for a moment. What was the first thing I thought of? I don't think I'll mention the fact that I threw up. "That I had to go home." I shrug. I'm pretty sure that was one of the first things I thought of. "That was pretty much my entire focus until I ran into you guys."

"That reminds me," April said, looking thoughtfully towards Casey. "Why did you run from Casey in the first place? And later when you ran from Leo, Mikey and Raph?"

"One of the first things that Master Splinter taught us was never to let a human see us. When I was standing in the apartment, just after I'd first seen Casey, that's when I remembered that and I ran from him. I probably wouldn't have run from Leo, but Casey showed up and since I was associating him as a Foot ninja-"

"Whoa! Hold on a second, you thought I was a Foot ninja?"

I can't help but sigh. I just knew that I was going to have to explain everything to them. I really need to learn how to keep my mouth shut. "You have to remember what I been through up until then, Casey. The only other people who it seen me and were able to follow me over the rooftops were Foot ninjas. I figured you were one of them, just not in uniform." Now that that little side conversation has been dealt with, it's time to get back to the original conversation. "That's the whole reason I ran from Leo. If Casey hadn't have shown up, I probably would have gone with him."

"So now am I going to get blamed for everything?" Casey folds his arms over his chest and looks away. "Figures…" Oh great, now I've hurt his feelings.

I resist the urge to roll my eyes, and that takes quite a bit of effort. "I'm not blaming you, Casey. I'm the one who couldn't remember who you were."

"It's not like you had any choice." I turn away from the sulking Casey to look at Leo. "The drugs were confusing you to a point that I'm surprised that you didn't freak the moment you saw me."

I'm not telling them about freaking when I saw my reflection. I've had enough humiliation for the past few days. "I was more freaked about how you seemed to appear out of the shadows. How long had you been following me before I noticed you?"

He's amused. I'd know that smirk anywhere. "About six minutes."

"Anyways," I continue, shaking my head slightly at my own folly. At least I had the drugs to blame. Otherwise I know Leo would be getting after me for extra practice. "Since Leo didn't react negatively to Casey showing up I assumed he was working with the Foot, too. That's why I ran from them and from Mikey, because he also jumped into the chase."

"And then you jumped off a building and nearly killed yourself!"

"Please Mikey, don't remind me." It definitely wasn't the smartest thing I had ever done. "I realized that was a stupid idea after I jumped off the building. Not that there was anything I could have done to stop in mid fall."

"Leo almost went after you." What? He could have been killed! Well…I was almost killed but still. I gape at Casey for a moment before Leo speaks up in his own defense.

"If I wasn't just a step off and a few seconds sooner, then I would have gone after you." And ended up splattered all over the asphalt, which is what I nearly was. Either that or he would have caught me and swung the two of us through an apartment window and into someone's living room. That would have just added to the problem.

"Initially you didn't run from me. Was that 'cause Casey wasn't there?"

What did I think when I first saw Raph, other then the fact that he was huge and had to have been lifting weights since he was eight. Actually, I think he started when he was nine or ten. I can't remember. Oh yeah, "You were safe. That's why I didn't run away from you to being with. I would have stayed with you if the Foot hadn't shown up. "

"So you ran from Raph because the Foot showed up and not because you thought he was going to take you back to the lab." I nod at April's statement. There's really no sense in repeating myself. "But why would you think of him as safe?"

"Because Raphael was always there for Donatello, especially when they were infants." Sensei? He's has that weird look that he only gets when he's proud of us. He glances first at me, then Raph, then Mikey and Leo. "The day I first found the four of you I noticed that Raphael always seemed to protect Donatello from Michelangelo and Leonardo just as much as Leonardo seemed to protect Michelangelo from Raphael and Donatello. Both Raphael and Leonardo kept themselves between their younger charges as if they were shielding them from the other two. As you four have grown, Raphael and Leonardo still have that inherent ability to protect Donatello and Michelangelo, respectively. I do not know why you two," Master Splinter pointedly looks at both Leo and Raph before continuing. "Have always protected one of your younger brothers more then the other, but it obviously has left a noticeable impact in Donatello's psyche." He turns to April, "That is why Donatello thought of Raphael as 'safe', Miss O'Neil, because Raphael has always brought safety and security to Donatello even if he doesn't believe he needs it."

Ooo-kay, now that was a little awkward. Master Splinter is right, though. Typically when I get knocked down or hurt in a fight, Raph's right there to help me back up or lay the smack down on whoever tried to take me out. Same thing with Leo and Mikey. Yeah, any of us will step up to bat to take a hit for one of our brothers, but both Leo and Raph seem to be slightly more protective of either Mikey or I. I wonder why? Are we from the same clutch? Did something happen in that pet store that none of us remember that caused Raph and Leo to be more protective of Mikey and I? Maybe it had something to do with the-

I'm rudely brought out of my thoughts as a fist knocks lightly against the side of my head. I blink in confusion for a moment before glaring at Mikey. I don't get a chance to ask him why he decided to do that before he's in my face -leaning over most of the bed and half pushing Leo out of the way as he does it- asking, "So when did you remember me?"

Uh oh. If I don't say this right I could have a repeat of this morning for the next few weeks. An overly attentive Mikey is almost as annoying as a very bored Mikey. Whatever happens I am not bringing up that argument again. "Right after I almost killed myself on your board in my not so gracefully act of sewer boarding."

"Where I found you down near the green line?"

I don't even get a chance to say anything to Leo before Mikey is pointing an accusing finger at me, "I knew it!" He half screams. Oh shell, this is going to be bad. "You were trying to tag the train too!"

Actually, I was trying not to get creamed by it. I don't think I'm going to say that or the fact that I nearly killed myself when I couldn't land right. As it is, Leo looks like he's about to chew me out for leaving the lair in the first place. Great. "I was not trying to touch the train, Mikey. I value the usage of my hands."

"And why did you leave the lair in the first place?"

Sorry guys, I hate lying to you but I don't need the three of you blaming yourself anymore than you already have been and still are. Even though neither of them will ever admit it, Leo and Raph are still blaming themselves for me leaving the lair that night too. I doubt they'll ever admit it to my face, but I don't think there's going to be anymore ganging up on me for a long time to come. "Sewer boarding." Oh, this is going to be so lame sounding. I can tell by the way Raph has lifted his eye ridge at my lame excuse for a lie to his question he doesn't believe me. "I had a generally idea of how to do it and I wanted to try so…yeah, didn't end too well."

Out of the corner of my eye I catch Leo stiffening as if he just remeb- oh shell. And here I thought I was done being lectured. "Don-"

I don't even let him start. "I'm fine, Leo. That's all that matters."

"You could have been killed!" That caught everyone's attention.

"I could have been killed long before that, Leo!" Am I actually getting into a yelling match with Leo?

"Not as close as I bet you were then!" Yup, we're in a yelling match now.

"I had a good six point two second window!"

He rolls his eyes in aggravation before continuing, "Before or after it went through?!"

"After! Why do you think I was sprawled all over the ground on the other side of the tracks and not smeared across them?" Oh I so shouldn't have said that. Now everyone's going to be on my shell.

"You almost got whacked by the three thirty train?!" And so it begins. Thanks, Casey. I owe you one.

"Don! I don't know how many times I've told you this, but if you're going to tag any trains go for the orange train at eight. It's slower and you can build up more speed and height coming in from the east."

"Don't encourage him, Mikey!" Raph snaps.

"And when the shell did you start tagging trains!" At least Leo's off my shell now. I would feel sorry for Mikey, but I told him not to let Leo find out he kept tagging trains after he broke his arm trying for one. "I thought you said you would never do that again!"

"Oh, lay off, Leo." Oh no, now Raph's going to get into an argument with Leo over this? Why does this not surprise me? "At least he's learned enough not to go for the high speed trains now."

"What?" Oh great, and I'm stuck between the two of them as they argue. Why did I have to be strapped down again? Yes, April, I agree with you. If I could palm my face too, I would be. "Are you going to admit to tagging trains too?!"

"BOYS!!!" That shuts them up. Mikey looks like he was about to say something, but shuts his mouth as Master Splinter gazes at each of us. "That is enough. Arguing about what has happened in the past only tends to disrupt the present and the future. However, if I hear anything else about 'tagging trains'," I really want to snicker at the look he's giving Mikey right now, but I know he'll only glare at me. The fact that Mikey is cringing away from him and looking sheepish is just adding to the hilarity of the situation. "A certain turtle's skateboards will go missing and," why's he glaring at me now? I didn't giggle. "If a certain older brother makes him a new one, there will be extra training for both for them and double the chores." Oh, ouch. He's not pulling any punches on the discipline side of things. "Is that understood?"

"Yes, Sensei," all four of us say at the same time. Even though Leo and Raph weren't scolded outright, the threat is still there. Now the only thing to worry about is what other death-defying stunts Mikey's going to come up with to keep himself entertained. Please let it be something semi-sane and not completely insane.

"How do you feel, Don?" After Sensei's verbal lashing, April's voice sounds really quiet. How do I feel? Normal would probably be the best way to describe myself right now. I don't feel any different then I normally do.

"Fine, I guess." I won't mention the fact that my hands and feet fell asleep last night at some point. I can still move them, so that rules out any serious nerve damage. It's just a minor discomfort. Somehow though, I know someone will blow it out of proportion, so I'll just keep my mouth shut. "Why?"

She gives me the gentlest smile as she gets out of the chair and starts to work on the strap while saying, "It's been almost forty minutes. I think it's safe to say you're officially cured."

There's a whoop from Casey, but I currently have a lap full of overjoyed Mikey to deal with. Leo grabs my shoulder in a tight and reassuring grip at the same time Raph pulls me into a half hearted headlock and gives me a noogie that is way gentler than usual. Physically he's not touching me, but I can feel Master Splinter's eyes on me even as I get overly congratulated by my three brothers. Casey and April are hugging each other, and I know as soon as my family gets off me April will give me a hug too. Casey will probably try and give me a noogie, end up hurting me, and then he and Raph will get into a wrestling match that'll end up with something breaking, because that's what always happens when they wrestle.

It was bound to happen eventually. I don't know who did it, but something hit my tender right hand and I can't stifle the gasp in time. Mikey freezes and half jumps off me and Raph has the elbow of my injured arm pulled out off to the side with a look on his face promising ill if anyone so much as tries to touch it. "Are you alright, Don?" Leo asks hurriedly.

Shell, they're going to be so protective of me that I'm going to want to scream. "I'm fine, Leo."

"Your arm is going in a sling." Yes, Raph. I know. I was the one who trained you in first aid, remember? "And there's going to be no rough housing." He glares at Mikey, who smiles back.

Mikey suddenly gasps and whips his head around to look at the clock. "Shell, the lasagna!" he growls before bolting out of the room.

"Mikey made lasagna?" Mikey hates lasagna. I don't know why, but he's the only one in the family that complains when it's for lunch or dinner. Everyone else likes it, even Raph, who has this odd love for vegetable lasagna but hates any other vegetarian dish. Mikey, however, complains about making it, eating it, and cleaning up after it. Is he still trying to suck up to me?

"Yeah, as long as he didn't burn it," Raph says as he secures the sling around my neck. Leo and April have the rest of the restraints off and I won't deny it's a relief to have those straps off. Shell, it feels so good to stretch…

"Lunch's ready!" comes a call from the kitchen. I share a look with everyone in the room, which pretty much asks the question of 'is it ready or over ready?'

…

Even if he does hate to make it, Mikey's lasagnas kick some serious shell. Everything that shellhead comes up with in the kitchen is amazing. I'll never understand how he can do it and make it look so simple. Well, there are three things he's stopped making on his own but I think that's just because he likes spending quality time with us in the kitchen. Anything involving baking other then dinner rolls he drags me into the kitchen for. He would excel at baking too if he could just get it through his head that precise measurements are the key. If he would just stop throwing random and unmeasured amounts in, then he wouldn't blow up the kitchen every time he tried to bake something.

With Raph in the kitchen, whatever comes out of there is going to have enough hot spices added to it to burn most of the digestive tract for whatever poor soul eats it. I think those dishes are more of a challenge between the two of them on who can eat the most spicy food before they have to get a drink. Those are the nights Leo and I end up in a fight for the apple juice or milk and I can help but notice Sensei only seems to have a little of the spicy dish and a lot of plain white rice. That's probably the safest bet right there.

When Leo is in the kitchen, the night's dish is going to be stir-fry. I think Mikey hates dealing with the exceedingly hot fats. The fact that he's lit up the kitchen more than once trying to use a wok probably is the reason why. I don't know how many times he's tried putting water on flaming oil and has ended up spreading the fire all over the kitchen. And he wonders why I took the time to find and install fire resistant paneling in there.

Now that the meal is done, what do I do? April and Casey had to go back their place. I'm wondering how big of an impact this little episode has had on their lives. Those two give up so much for us. I'm so glad we met them in the first place. Our entire lives would have been so much harder if they hadn't done as much as they have for us. I'll have to make sure I find a way to pay them back for this.

Mikey has herded me out of the kitchen and told me to go rest. Raph told me the same thing before he went to talk to Master Splinter about something. I hope he's okay. He seemed embarrassed about something as we were eating. Normally he throws his two cents into the conversations, but he really didn't seem to be saying much today. He kept glaring at his food as if he was going to yank out his sais and stab it repeatedly. Hopefully, Master Splinter can figure out what's wrong with him.

And Leo is…somewhere. I think I saw him heading to his room after he was done eating. He's probably meditating. I probably should go and lay down, but I'm really not that tired. I'm feeling a little restless right now. I'll just walk around the lair for a few minutes. That should help a little, then I'll try and lay down for a bit.

One thing is for sure, I trashed the lair. It looks like everything been mostly picked up and cleaned up. Someone took the time to pick up all the pieces of the server tower I crushed. I take a moment to rifle around in the cardboard box full of computer components and breathe a sigh of relief. It looks like all I really did was crush the outer casing. Everything seems to be here except for one of the fans. It wouldn't surprise me if I had broke one of those things. I always end up breaking one of those somehow.

The most obvious heavily damaged item is the half pipe. Shell, that's a mess. Someone has completely dismantled what was still standing and everything has been laid out in neat little piles. Did they get any rest after I had fallen asleep to Raph stitching up my arm? I glance over the materials that were salvaged. I should have enough to rebuild the half pipe, but I'm going to look into getting a higher-grade bolt for the supports. It looks like some of them were shorn completely off. That's what made the half pipe fall apart like that. Instead of getting them second hand I think I'm going to special order them from an industrial firm this time.

I stop looking over the rubble and turn towards the stairs. I'm going to have to redesign a good section of that framing so that there's a secondary support system to prevent a total collapse like that from happening again. I really should have fixed that thing over a year ago. Why did I have to keep putting it off? I sigh, already knowing the answer. That was the least of my worries almost a year ago. I had much more pressing matters to worry about then.

I stop and look over at dojo doors before I head up the stairs. I'm so glad the fight never led in here. That would've just been a massive accident waiting to happen. What would my brothers have done if I'd managed to get in here? I step through the doors and look around the room at all the different weapon racks. Even though we've been trained never to take a life, Master Splinter has taken the time to teach us how to. Depending on the skill of the wielder anything can become a deadly weapon. From bos to swords and even flowerpots and dining room chairs, everything can be deadly in its own right.

Speaking of deadly, that stupid naginata is leaning innocently against the wall. I glare at it, despite the fact that it is an inanimate object and completely immune to my anger. I really can't blame it for trying to kill Mikey, that was the programming Saka installed in me, but…it was the weapon I nearly killed him with. If April hadn't fired that dart when she did… I sigh as I grab the smooth black pole and remove it from the wall. Sensei told me no practicing, but I need to remind myself that I am not a killer, that this is just another weapon to learn how to use, that I control who it kills and not the other way around.

I take a step away from the wall and I'm in mid turn when I hear someone clearing their throat. Busted. Oh boy, why did it have to be him? I wish I could pull off Mikey's puppy eyes as Leo marches against the mats to where I standing. "You're supposed to be resting, Don. Not messing around in here." He comes to stand next to me, regarding the bladed staff in my hands.

"I know. I'm just not that tired, Leo." As long as I know what I'm supposed to be doing, Leo won't lecture me too bad. "I was just strapped down to a bed for the past seventeen hours. I'm not exactly in a rush to get back into one." There, that should take the lecture right out of him.

"You could try and lay down on the couch for a bit." I am not sleeping on that couch for a long time to come. I doubt I'll even be able to sit on it for a while. I give Leo a less than happy glare out of the corer of my eyes as I flip the naginata up to rest on my shoulder.

"What was it with you guys and always laying me down on that anyways? I designed the medical facility in my lab for a reason, and I had a perfectly good bed up stairs."

He smiles at me as he reaches out to take the weapon balancing on my shoulder. Without pausing, I turn it over to him. He takes a few steps back and holds the weapon out as he looks down the staff and onto the blade, admiring the craftsmanship. "Everyone could keep an eye on you there. We weren't constantly hovering around the lab on your room. You can see the couch from almost anywhere in the lair." He tosses the weapon up to catch it higher up on the pole and flips it around hand once before catching it and frowning. "When did you learn to use one of these, anyways? I don't think I've ever seen you use a naginata before."

"I never have. They're longer and heavier then most of the tridents and spears I've used before, but they follow the same general combat style."

He looks at the weapon in his hand before looking at me. "You taught yourself how to use it?"

I can help but smile at him. "You and Raph are not the only one who do extra training, Leo." Well that has him looking dumbfounded. Does he really think that the only thing I do in my lab is experiments, repairing, upgrading and inventing? "I've worked on a large combination of styles in my free time."

"When? I almost never see you in the dojo except during mandatory practices. Are you training in your lab? Or in your room?"

Why do I have a feeling I'm about to be scolded for something? "In the lab. My room lacks in the required floor space to effectively train with any form of bo staff or pole arm." Well, technically I could train in there, but I would end up clearing off the tabletops and knocking down most of the shelves.

"Don…" Yup, he's going to scold me for something. I can tell by the way he seems to frown as he says my name. The scolding tone in his voice as to the ambiance of the lecture I'm about to get. "That floor in there is nothing but concrete. There would be no one there to know if you fell and hurt yourself. Do you train in there when the door's closed?" His eyes are narrowed as he continues. I hate it when he seems to read my mind. "Don, we don't open that door for a reason. What would happen if you hurt yourself and were unconscious? No one would know anything about it until one of us had to come in there to remind you to eat. You could be out for most of the day before anyone found you." He walks past me and rests the naginata back against the wall where it had been before. "That's why we train in here and only in here." He turns to me and crosses his arms. "From now on, if I see the door to your lab closed, I'm going to go in to make sure you're not practicing."

Oh no, I am not going to bow down meekly to Leo's I'm-in-charge-here voice. "There's a reason I close that door, Leo. I don't want to see one of you guys get hurt because someone walked through the door at the wrong time. I don't need anymore experiments blowing up in my face and I don't have the time to replace everything that certain-people-who-will-remain-nameless seem to break whenever they walk past the threshold."

Leo just raises an eyebrow at me like he usually does when I've repeated myself too much. This argument is never going to end, I just know it. "Regardless of Mikey and Raph's bad habits, I'm still going through that door if I see it closed."

I sigh and rub at my eyes. I knew that this was going to happen. "I'll lock it."

"I can pick the lock." I wasn't expecting him to answer that. It was more of a half hearted argument starter then anything. It was more for my personal enjoyment rather than for anything else. Still, if he's going to take the bait…

"I'll install a dead bolt."

"I can slip my katana through the side of the door and cut it."

"I'll barricade it with a four-by-six and a two 'U' brackets."

He just gives me a devilish smirk if I ever saw one. "Then I'll get Raph to break it down as a diversion as I sneak into your lab through the ventilation system." Shell, how am I going to block that? I can't seal off the vents with all the gasses that can possibly be floating around in there at any given time. I could poison myself and everyone else in the lair. I guess this round goes to Leo. "Don," he puts a hand on my shoulder brings me out of my contemplations. "Enough. Just swear that you'll always practice in here from now on and I won't go into your lab if the door's closed, alright?"

A reasonable compromise. I don't plan on extra training for a while now, anyways. With Leo here the whole reason I started extra training is kind of null and void. "Alright, Leo. I swear on my honor not to do any extra training in my lab anymore. I promise. All training will be in the dojo from now on."

He gives me that smile that means he's truly happy with the outcome of an argument before he grips my shoulder and turns me towards the door. "Good. Now, it's time you lay down for a bit. You look tired." I feel tired. I yawn as the two of us head out of the dojo and up the stairs. Is he going to follow me all the way to my room? What a stupid question. Of course he's going to follow me upstairs. He probably won't leave my side until he's sure I'm fast asleep. "Where did you get it anyways?"

"Huh?" I think I missed something just now.

"The naginata. Master Splinter doesn't remember ever seeing it before and neither did Raph or Mikey. Casey and April were at a complete lost to where you found it as well. Did you make it?"

I grace him with a small smile. I'm good at weapon repairs, but I don't think I could ever make a weapon from scratch with the precision that's in that blade. I paid top dollar for it for a reason and I sure as shell got my money's worth with it. "I wish I had been able to make that. I may be able to do minor repairs on the majority of the weapons around here, Leo, but I don't have the blacksmithing skills required to be able to make a high quality blade like the one on that naginata. To make a kiln alone with the ability to reach the required temperatures would take some very extensive research-"

"How do you do it then?" Leo effectively cuts me off and it takes me a moment to figure out what he's talking about. And even then I double check to make sure we're on the same page.

"Fix weapons?" At his nod I continue. "A bo staff has to be replaced if it's broken. Depending on where a nunchaku is broken is how hard it is to repair the weapon. If the chains are broken I have to reattach a new length of chain between the clamps before reattaching it to the handles. If one of the handles is broken, then I have to pry the clamps off the end and install a new handle before re-clamping the clamp. Katanas have to be partially melted down before reformed and cooled down to help seal out any form of impurities. However, doing this often weakens that piece of metal more than the rest of the blade, making it easier to be broken in that same location because of stress. That's why I always tell you not to reuse that particular sword in combat again, the risk of it breaking again is way too high." Have I ever had to repair Raph's sais before? I don't think I have. Out of the four of us, I don't think Raph's even had to replace his weapons once. I think the ones he uses are still the originals. "To date I have yet to repair Raph's sais. I don't think I could match the tapper of the prongs correctly if I did. Most likely I would only end up damaging them more, and would owe Raph a new set."

"So if you didn't make the naginata, where did you get it?"

Persistent, isn't he? But if he wasn't, then I would have thought that this was a rather well done clone of my older brother with the incorrect personality programming installed. "Leo, please, you can find almost anything online nowadays, including finely crafted weaponry from almost every region on earth. Since I was also in control of the finances in household it was easy to purchase the naginata without raising any suspicion."

I don't have to look to know that Leo is giving me that look that says 'I know you did something wrong and I'm getting ready to lecture you on it'. You can tell by the way his eyes ridges seem to draw together little more than necessary in his eyes narrow as he stares at you. I really need to learn how Mikey can do those puppy eyes that completely melt him into a pile of elderly brother loving goo. Those would have really come in handy during this conversation. "And where did you have it delivered? Casey and April never saw it, so how did you get a hold of it?"

I can't help but smile at him and roll my eyes. There are times that Leo can overlook the simplest details. He really needs to learn that not everything is it overly complex problem in need of solving. After all, a complex calculus equation can only be solved if basic Mathematic principles are known. "Technically, I sent it to Casey right after he moved out of his apartment and in with April. I remember him saying that the landowner wasn't going to have someone move in immediately after him. Instead, the new tenant was going to move in about a week after Casey had already left. I calculated so that the naginata arrived at his old apartment after he had moved out and before the new tenant had moved in."

Leo chuckles as we enter my room, and he immediately steers me towards the bed. I knew he was going to do that. "And then you started practicing in your lab instead of the dojo to become proficient in using it." It's not a question so much as a statement, so I'm not even bothering answering that. "There's just one thing I don't understand," he says as he waits by the bed as I crawl into it. He is not going to…oh, that so figures. It would so be like Leo to tuck me into bed. And of course he has to. No, don't smile at me, I'm glaring at you for a reason. I'm really getting sick and tired of all this babying going on. I'm a grown mutant ninja turtle, too. "Why did you feel the need to start training with the naginata? You're perfectly good at using a bo staff. Are you thinking of giving that up?"

I sigh and look towards a wall. Somehow I knew this question would come up one day if anyone ever found that thing. That's why I was keeping it hidden for so long, so I wouldn't have to face this question. I know better than to wait for Leo to drop it. He'll sit there on the edge of the bed for the rest of the night if he has to waiting for the answer. "I-I rather not talk about this, Leo." Yeah right, like that's really going to persuade him to drop the topic.

"Donnie…" Yeah, I knew that wasn't going to work on him. I sigh again and mumble my response under my breath. Maybe that will keep him from- "Don. What's wrong? Speak up so I can hear you."

Leo, you're probably the best big brother I could ever ask for, but right now I really want to tell you where you can shove it. I might as well sit up too so that I know he can hear it this time. "What I said was: I got it to be able to protect Mikey and Raph better."

Leo is frowning at me, like he can't decide if I'm actually being serious or not. I look back at the wall. Now I know what one of my specimens feels like when looking at under a microscope. "Master Splinter forbade you three from fighting while I was gone. Why did you feel you need to protect them?"

I can't help but laugh at him. "And obviously that stopped Raph from fighting." I had so much sarcasm in that sentence that I'm surprised I didn't drown in it. "And even though Mikey won't admit it, I know that some of the bruises he came home with did not come from a child's birthday party." I sigh again and look away from wall at Leo. "You told me I was in charge of their well-being when you left. I was worried that if one of them ever called for back-up, I wouldn't be able to help them with just a bo. I wanted to carry a sword with me too, but that was too bulky and I would have to go and get a sword before I could go help them. I figured a naginata would solve that problem, so I ordered one off-line." Theoretically, a naginata can be defined as a katana tied to the end of a bo staff. It's a crude but effective way of describing it. Uh oh, Leo's giving me that look again…

"Don." Great, here comes another lecture. "When I asked you to keep an eye on their well-being, I didn't mean that you had to go to such an extreme just 'in case' something happened. Both Raph and Mikey are fully trained ninjas that know their limitations. I highly doubt either of them would get in over their heads rough housing with a couple of street thugs."

I knew he was going to say that. It doesn't help that even though I told that to myself I just couldn't believe it. All I could think of was 'what ifs' when they were both out there fighting, and I knew it. Yet I never did anything to stop them. "I know that they can take care of themselves, Leo. I was just worried that the two millionth percent chance that they were going to get in over their heads would happen and I wouldn't be able to fight well enough to help them get out of it. I was worried that I would just get in their way so I thought-"

"Don." Talking in a stern voice usually catches my attention, Leo. I really don't think that the grabbing and give my shoulders a slight shake was needed. "You are not going to sit here and downplay your fighting abilities all day. You are a terrific fighter and a dangerous warrior against your opponents. Just because you dislike violence does not mean that you are weak. If it was my choice I wouldn't fight either, and neither would Mikey or Raph." Well, I doubt Raph would stop fighting if he was given a choice. "We all fight only because we have to not because we want to and none of us would consider you joining in a fight as a handicap. You need to stop doubting your own abilities on the battlefield like this."

"Leo…" I can't look at his eyes any more. There filled with so much determination that it's intimidating to look at them for so long. The covers are a lot more interesting anyways.

Fingers gently press underneath my chin and force me to look back up at Leo's face. He's giving me that purely affectionate look that he gets when I've missed the complete obvious. What did I miss? "Don, remember, it's not the weapon that makes the warrior, it's the warrior that makes the weapon." Oh yeah, Master Splinter told us that when he first started us on weapons training all those years ago. He made us repeat that at the beginning and ending of practice every time we worked with weapons. I can help but smile sheepishly at Leo. That was rather forgetful of me.

He chuckles and pulls me into a hug, letting me rest my chin on his shoulder. He doesn't seem very keen on letting me go anytime soon. I wrap my arms around him and relax. I'm one lucky turtle to have Leo here to cheer me up and tell me how proud he is of me even without words. It's one of those things you can see in his eyes. I don't think I've ever heard him say that out loud, either…

"Come on," he whispers in my ear. "You need to get some rest." Was I really half asleep against his shoulder? If that yawn was any indication, then I'll say yes. Leo lays me back in the bed and waits until I've rolled over on my stomach before draping the blankets over me. Shell, he can be such a mother hen sometimes. And I'm not going to complain too much about that, because it's nice to be taken care of every now and then. I sigh into the pillow as his fingers gently begin to massage the back of my neck and I'm almost asleep when he hesitantly gets off the bed and leaves the room. He doesn't close the door all the way and just as my eyes drift closed I hear him whisper, "Rest easy, Donnie. I'm proud of you."

I fall asleep smiling.

…

"Donnie?

Huh? Wha…

"Are you awake?"

Awake? Well I guess you could consider this awake. I feel more like I'm about to fall asleep again. Man, I'm tired. I shift slightly on the bed and that's when I realize how stiff I am. Exactly how long have I been asleep, anyways? Judging by the soreness in my shoulders and legs, I've been out for while. I feel like I've spent the entire afternoon asleep. Hey, wait a minute. Did I spend most of the afternoon asleep?

"Don. Donatello, it's time to wake up now." While it's really tempting to wake up, April, but I think I'm just going to go back to sleep. You don't have any coffee with you, so I have no interest in waking up right now. I turn my head away from the door and towards where I know the wall is. Hopefully she'll get the hint and go away. "Donnie…I know you're awake." Or she could presently shake my good shoulder gently in an attempt to get me up.

It's really hard to ignore someone when they're shaking you. "April, stop." Just go away already and let me sleep. I try and knock her hand away from my shoulder but that only makes her sigh and shake a little harder trying to coax me into waking up. "I wanna sleep," I mumble half-heartedly into the pillow as she keeps shaking me and calling my name. Fine. Fine. If it will make you stop shaking me I'll at least open my eyes. See, they're open now.

She smiles down at me. "Good evening, sleepy head." Shell, I really did sleep away the afternoon. I hope it's not too late in the evening. I wanted to get some repairs started from my unintended fighting spree today. If I did sleep too late, then I'll be lucky to get a chance to start on some of the initial redesign of the half pipe before someone tells me to go to sleep. "And yes, you did sleep away most of the day, Don." Stop smiling like it's a good thing, April. This is a disaster! "It's nearly eight."

"Eight? As in eight at night?" At least I didn't sleep away the night as well. Maybe with any luck I'll be able to wait till everyone else goes to sleep so I can get some more work done. She stops shaking her head yes as I sit up. Oh, get that stupid grin off you're face April. It's embarrassing to have you look at me like I'm your favorite son. "April…"

She giggles as she looks away from me. "Sorry, I know you hate that, but you're cute when you're half asleep." I can understand calling Mikey cute, but I am not cute. That must have shown on my face, because April busts out laughing at me. I roll my eyes at her, which seems to dash her attempts at composing herself as another round of laughter cuts her off. This is so humiliating…

"Can you stop laughing at me long enough to tell me what's been happening while I was asleep?" I ask in a completely exhausted voice.

My voice must have tipped her off that I was beginning to get annoyed. Either that, or it was the glare I was giving her with half asleep eyes. She snorted but was able to compose herself a moment later. "Sorry, Don," she said, smiling at me as she perches on the edge of the bed. She's still grinning at me, even as she asks seriously, "How do you feel?"

Considering how long I've been asleep, pretty good. I obviously needed to pass out for most of the afternoon and evening. I didn't think I would have been that tired after being strapped down and asleep for eighteen hours, but that really can't be considered a restful sleep. Sure the drugs kept me relaxed but that doesn't mean I actually got any rest. It's hard to relax after nearly killing your family and friends. Even with the help of medicines. "Better. I guess I really did need to sleep."

She nods her head and gets up as I begin to pull the covers off me so I can get out of bed. It's kind of chilly in here. Either that, or I'm running a fever. I hope it's just that the furnace has broken again. A fever could lead to a huge list of complications that I don't even want to think about. "It wouldn't surprise me if you were tired, Don. Being comatose for almost sixteen hours, followed by a sudden strenuous exercise wasn't the best thing for you."

Tell me about it, April. I think I pulled my muscles' muscles. "And on top of the injuries that I had received in battle with the Foot and the ones I received here at home, it's a wonder I didn't lay down sooner." Actually, my injuries are feeling kind of numb. Did they inject me with a painkiller when I was asleep, or something?

She watches me carefully as I get out of bed and stand next to her. I can tell she's watching my movements to make sure that they're consistent and solid. If I passed out right now, she would catch me or at least make sure I land on the bed. I can tell by the way her smile seems to grow that I've passed her generalized health and wellness test. "Well you're looking much better. I thought you were going to fall asleep in your lasagna during lunch."

Speaking of falling asleep, when was the last time she got a good night's sleep? "You look like you could use a nap, too, April." She's always been rather pale in human standards, but her skin seems a shade too light and there are dark circles under eyes. Even her eyes are a little duller then normal. "When was the last time you got a decent rest?"

She gives me a soft smile as she sighs. "Honestly, I don't think I've been seeping well since I found out that you were missing." That means April has had a decent sleep since almost sixteen days ago. That's almost three hundred eighty four hours of little to no rest. "Then we finally found you but you couldn't speak right and had amnesia…" She trails off for a moment before sighing again.

"So you pushed yourself even harder to try and figure out what had happened to me." I finish what she was trying to say as if it was nothing. I should have known that April would've done this to herself. "April, you need to take better care of yourself."

She smiles at me as we both head for the door. "You're starting to sound like Casey."

"Well, Casey's right for a change, April." I can't believe I just said that. Casey being right is almost an oxymoron, emphasis on the moron part. It's not like Casey is a complete idiot, but there are times when I worry about his mental stability. "Regardless of what happened to me, you shouldn't have forced yourself to keep going like that. You could have seriously hurt yourself."

She stops dead in her tracks and gives me a look that I know means I've over stepped my bounds. April's mad at me. "Don, you're my friend. One of the best friends I could ever hope to have. If you go missing and show up again hurt, I'm going to do everything I can to help you get better again. It's what you would have done for me in the past and I'm going to return the favor every chance I get. That's what I told Casey and your brothers." She points at me and jabs her finger against my plastron. "So don't forget it."

Okay, I can see where she is getting at. However, the emergency is over with, so she should be resting. I fold my arms across my chest and look up at my surrogate sister. It's time to fight fire with fire. "Well, as you can see I'm better now, so why don't you go home and lay down. Or do I have to drug you and let you spend the night on the couch?" She blinks at me as if she doesn't believe that I am serious. "Well? It's your choice. To be drugged or not to be drugged? That is the question."

She started laughing before I could finish my last sentence, but at least I know that she heard my passive threat. After all the times she has threatened to drug me and has drugged me, it's time for some much needed revenge. I have several kinds of sedatives that I make sure to keep on hand just in case, and I'm not afraid to use them on her. "I'm planning on going home after dinner and sleeping until Monday, Don." Well, that will give her seventy-two hours of rest, but she still shouldn't have pushed it like that. She starts towards the stairs again as she talks. "I don't need the drugs, but thank you for the offer."

Come to think of it, I don't think I have ever thanked April for all the times she has drugged me. Usually I woke up thirsty with a headache and grumbling about interfering humans. The last thing on my mind was thanking her for making sure I didn't collapse from exhaustion. "Hey, April." I should thank her for what she's done in the past two weeks. I don't know if my brothers would have been able to get by without her. She looks at me expectantly and suddenly I can't help but feel nervous. "Thanks…y'know…for everything." Wow, Don, way to put it elegantly. Shell, that had to have sounded so stupid.

She stops walking and gives me a hug. "Don't mention it, Don. You may not be my little brother, but you and the others are as close as family to me." She leans back away from me, holding me at a distance as she smiles at me. "If I could I would move the earth to help you guys any day."

Oh, this is just to good a set up to ignore. "April, the earth easily outweighs you and myself by several trillion pounds. I highly doubt you would be able to move it in the event that we needed help with it." She let's go of my arms only to lightly smack me upside the head. I figured that was going to be what she would do. Since she's still smiling at me, I know I didn't actually offend her. Thankfully, she's use to my literal sense of humor just as much as my family is.

"Stop being such a wise turtle," she says as we start down the stairs again. The main room is strangely quiet and devoid of life. The lair is never this quiet unless something has happened or Master Splinter has called us together for some training. Since it's almost dinner I know he called them into the dojo for training. I hope nothing bad has happened while I was asleep...

"Casey?" April must have noticed the lack of chaos, too. Casey sits up from where he was lounging on the couch watching the television so he can look at the two of us approaching. "Where is everyone?" She gestures to the otherwise empty room around us. "They were just here before I went to wake up Don."

"Splinter wanted to talk to them about something. He said that they would be out in a second. Mikey asked me to tell you that dinner was going to need checking when you came downstairs." He jerks his head at me while saying, "Yo Don. How are you feeling?"

"Take a seat and relax for a bit, Don. I'll be back once I'm done checking the oven."

I flop down in the recliner and lean back, letting the footrest come up. I love this old recliner even more than Master Splinter does, I think. Originally, the four of us had gotten this recliner out of the junkyard and cleaned it up for Sensei for his birthday a few years back. After Leo left for South America, I noticed that he rarely chose to sit in the recliner. I wonder if maybe that's because the chair reminded him of Leo that much that he didn't want to sit in it anymore. It might have something to do with this spring that's trying to stab me in the arm. Why the shell is it poking out of the chair like that? I guess I could try to push it back in...

"Umm...Don? What are you doing to the recliner?"

I guess this does have to look weird. It's not like I'm kneeling on the seat, facing the left arm and pushing of the chair with all of my weight. Nah, that can't look weird at all. "I'm just trying to figure out what's up with the spring in the arm of the recliner." Wait a second? There aren't any springs in the arm of a recliner. What the shell could be poking up through the arm of the recliner?

"Okay, Don. That's enough." Casey, let go of my shell. "Come on. There's no way I going to let you flip over the recliner while you're supposed to be resting. Leave it alone. Come on and sit on the couch with me." You're more annoying then Mikey is, Casey. He pushes me back on the couch and gestures towards the television. "Now just sit back and watch Godzilla eat Tokyo again."

"He's not eating the city, Casey. He's destroying it." I've seen Godzilla vs. Mothra about a million times. It's one of Mikey's favorite monster movies. Actually...now that I think about it, I think that this is the only one of Mikey's favorite movies that he doesn't have on DVD. Hmm...I think I might have just figured out what to get Mikey for his birthday. I'll have to check and make sure that no one else is planning on buying that for hi- OW! I rub at my head and glare at Casey, who is putting the pillow he used to smack me in the side of the head back against the arm of the couch.

"You're thinking too hard. I can hear you grinding the gears all the way over here. Just chill out and relax for a couple hours."

"I've been resting for most of the day, Casey. I'm really not in the mood to rest anytime soon."

"Yeah, well sorry." Hey, don't point your finger at me like that. I haven't done anything to piss you off. Usually when Casey's mad, he has a habit of either breaking everything around him or he points at you. "But I promised Raph that I would make sure you took it easy when he wasn't around." Oh great, Casey always does what he has promised, especially to April and Raph. "So chill."

Speaking of promises, I wonder if he kept his promise to me, especially if Raph killed someone trying to find me. How am I going to word that question and not sound like I'm going to condemn him if he didn't? "Hey Casey." I guess the easiest way to do this is to just say it and hope that he knows that I'm not mad at him. "Did you keep an eye on Raph for me while I was...under the weather?"

He looks at me and frowns as if he can't remember what I'm talking about. After a moment of staring at me, he looks back at the screen with a sigh. Was that a good sigh or a bad sigh? "I'm not you, Don," he says after another moment of sitting there in silence. "I really couldn't get him to unwind and talk the way you can get him to. It's like he can just be around you and he spills his guts about everything. I tried that and we would just stand around in silence forever. I don't know how you can get him to unwind, but it only seems to be you who can do it." I open my mouth to try and say something, only to be cut off by Casey again. "I tried to be there for him like I promised, Don, but I couldn't figure out how you do it."

How do I do it? It's not like I'm actively trying to get Raph to talk. He'll talk about something when he's ready to talk. Maybe that's how I do it? Instead of trying to get Raph to talk, I just wait for him to talk. I go about my own business while he putters around the lab and wait for him to start talking. I really don't pay any attention to him until he starts to say something. That's got to be it. "The key is to keep doing what you're doing until he feels relaxed enough to talk you. Then you listen to what he has to say." I shrug as I watch Godzilla roar at a giant moth floating above the Tokyo skyline. "There's really no secret to get Raph to talk. You just have to wait for him to be ready. If you try to make him talk to you, he'll just get all stand offish and refuse to talk at all."

Casey snorts as he watches the screen too. "I still think it's only you who can get Raph to talk like that." I shake my head, but I don't bother saying anything else. There's really no need to. No matter what I would say, Casey would just come up with another way on how it is I am the only one who can get Raph to talk about what he's thinking. It's not like it's rocket science or anything. "Even if I couldn't get him to talk at all, Don, I was still there for him when he needed it."

"Thanks, Casey. I owe you one." He waves his hand at me lazily. I don't see the need to brush off the thanks Casey, but if you insist...I'll just have to make sure and up grade his bike when he's not looking.

"I'm back," April says as she sits in the recliner. She frowns and glares down at the arm of the recliner. Good, I'm not the only one to have noticed something poking up through the arm of the recliner. "What's with the recliner?"

"Don all but flipped that thing over to find out what it was, April. Don't worry about it now. We're supposed to be taking it easy. Y'know, the emergency's done with, time to kick back and party. What is with the two of you and trying to fix everything?" It's nice to know I'm not the only one to get yanked around by my shell. Well, April really doesn't have a shell, but her tee shirt works just as well obviously. Casey pushes her down on the couch next to me and goes back to his spot on the couch to watch the movie. "When's the food supposed to be ready, anyways?"

April rolls her eyes and snuggles down on the couch between us. She pulls the afghan off the back of the couch and throws it over our laps. "It's sitting on the counter cooling off right now. It should be cool enough to cut and eat in the next couple of minutes." She yawns as she rests her head against Casey's shoulder, while curling her feet up next to my thigh. April's got a good idea. I lift my feet up and tuck them under the blankets as I lean back into the arm of the couch. I find myself muffling my yawn as Godzilla tries to set Mothra on fire...

"Hey, Donnie?" I jerk awake to find myself alone on the couch and with Mikey kneeling in front of me. "Morning - I mean evening, Donnie. I really didn't want to wake you up, but you should eat something before you go to bed." He presses a plate laden with pizza into my hand before sitting next to me on the couch. "There's a Sprite on the table for you. Now eat."

Bossy, isn't he? I yawn as I pick up the pizza and began indulging in it. The rest of the lair is all-quiet, except for an episode of M.A.S.H. playing on the television. "Where is everyone?" I ask as I reach for my soda after the first two slices have been eaten.

"April fell asleep on Casey, so he took her home. Raph and Leo went with them just in case anything happened. Sensei is meditating, and I'm making sure you eat something before you're going back to bed." Good, at least now April can get some rest. I really don't feel like going back to bed, but judging by the look on Mikey's face I don't think I'm going to have much of a choice in the matter.

Eight pieces of pizza and one soda later Mikey has obviously decided that I don't need to finish watching the rest of the episode. I've barely finished swallowing the last of the crust when Mikey is suddenly in front of me, blocking the view of the television and pulling the empty plate out of my hand. "Time for bed!" he says, giving me a smile that sets off every mental alarm bell that I have. What is he planning?

AAAHHH!!!!

"Michelangelo! Put me down right now!"

"Stop struggling, Don, and just relax. I promise I wouldn't drop you, but if you keep kicking like that I am going to." I do not like being picked up, Mikey, and you know it. I glare at him. I know better than to complain about this or show my annoyance in anyway. If Mikey knew how much I hated being picked up, he would do it every chance he got just to annoy me. "See, now is this so difficult?" He carries me over to the bed and sets me on the edge of it before pushing me over and rearranging the blankets over me. "Comfy?" I raise an eye ridge at him. "Good!" He beams down at me happily. "Now do you need me to read you a bedtime story or anything?"

I hope he's not going to baby me forever. This is really starting to get annoying. "I'm fine, Mikey." I really didn't have to fake that yawn, but at least it will help to add to the effect. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Sure thing, dude." He turns and starts out of the room, only to pause at the doorway. "Hey, Don?" I mumble into the pillow below me so he'll continue. I really would just like him to stop all together and let me go to sleep. "If you need anything, just holler."

Okay, that does it. I refuse to have Mikey wait on me hand and foot for the next couple of weeks. "Mikey?"

"Yeah, Don? You need something?"

"Mikey, please, you don't have to keep doing this. I'm fine, you really don't have to worry about me anymore." I can see his shoulders sag as he stands in the doorway. I hope I didn't hurt his feelings. I had better make amends just in case I did. "But if I need anything, I promise I'll call." I can see his shoulders lift back up. Good, even if I did upset him by saying that, he's back to normal now. I know he's going to keep babying me, but hopefully now it isn't going to be that bad anymore.

"Night, Don," I hear from the doorway, followed by the gentle click of the latch closing.

"Night, Mikey," I say it loud enough that he could hear it through the door before I force myself to relax onto the bed. I'm surprised at how little it takes for me to fall asleep. You would think after all the sleeping I've done in the past thirty-eight hours that I wouldn't fall asleep the minute my head hit the pillow.

…

_Steel rank and steel as Raph blocked the swing of my sword with one of his sais. I spun out of block, kicking him in the back of the shell to knock him off balance for a moment. Midway through the spin, I ducked low to avoid a nunchaku and punched Mikey as I came back up from the other side of the nunchaku. I didn't pause to see how much damage I had done as I continued to spin back towards Raphael shell. I bring up the sword, angling at the back of his neck, and move my arm faster than my body building up enough momentum to make one clean-cut. Without any conscious thought, without a pause, I slice through the back of his neck, easily decapitating him._

_Warmth splashes against my arm, shoulder, and catches me a little bit on my cheek. The metallic smell of the blood doesn't even seem to faze me as I finally stopped the spin and stand over the fallen body. Behind me, Mikey screams. I… I… I just killed Raph and I'm not even fazed by it. What's going on? What's happening to me? Am I under the effects of the drug again? I turn almost too slowly to be natural and look at Mikey. His terrified eyes meet mine as he finally drags him away from Raph. I slowly bring the katana up, angling towards him as I slide into a classic offense stance. Oh no, not Mikey too…_

_Mikey holds his hands up as if that's all he needs to ward me off and slowly starts to back away from me. "D-Donnie? Donnie, snap out of it. Come on, Don. This isn't funny anymore!" I suddenly lunge forward, bringing the sword around and taking a quick slice at him. He's barely able to dodge it and the sharpened sword easily slices through the tails of his mask. "Donnie!!!"_

I gasp as my eyes fly open and I find myself staring at the wall of my bedroom. How do I get into my bedroom? What happened? Is Mikey are right? Raph…oh shell…oh shell, Raphie… I slowly sit up and blink numbly out across my room. I killed him. I killed my older brother. I-I killed…no, it was a nightmare. It was just a nightmare. It-it had to be a nightmare. Please, let it be a nightmare! Why are these sheets tangled around my leg so much? Was I struggling that bad in my dreams?

The blankets have barely hit the floor before I'm running out of the room. I hope that that was all just a dream. A really, really bad dream. I pause outside Mikey's door; I wonder if he's okay. Carefully, I turn the knob and peek my head around the door and into the room beyond. Everything seems to be in a total state of disarray as usual. If this room were ever clean and orderly, then I would worry about him. Mikey's on the bed, one leg is jutting out from underneath the blankets and hanging over the edge of the bed. His snores are muffled by the pillow that his face is crammed deeply into. With an extra loud snore, Mikey rolls over onto his shell and mumbles about something involving a videogame. At least I think it was a videogame, I'm pretty sure that's where I've heard him talking about Ratchet and Clank before.

Mikey seems to be alright. I close the door quietly and begin to walk towards Raph's. Please let him be okay. Please let that have been nothing more than a bad dream. I bite my lip nervously as my hand closes around the handle to his door. Come on, Donnie, open the door. You never know if he's alright if you don't open the door. I take a deep breath to help calm my nerves a little more before quickly opening the door and sticking my head inside before I loose the nerve to face the truth. Well hopefully it's not the truth…

The first thing I notice is that there are no teeth-rattling snores echoing through the room. That's not a good sign. Raphael is lying on his shell in his hammock with most of the blankets on the floor rather than on top of him. He seems peaceful enough. I open the door all the way, why isn't he snoring? Wait a minute…his chest isn't moving…oh, shell… Shell! He's not breathing!!!

I'm moving even as my mind is going over every possible scenario to help him. Depending on how long he's been…gone, there may be nothing I can do. Please let this have been recently -not at all would be preferable-but it happened in the past ten seconds, I should be able to do something. I don't even think I have the upper body strength to be able to perform CPR on him. Still, I'm at least going to have to try. I should be able to call for help and get Leo or Mikey in here. They both have the strength to push down his chest. I should've spent more time in the gym and less in my lab. I should've-

I'm grabbing at his shoulders, when I feel him jerk under my fingers and lets out a surprised grunt. I really don't get chance to be thankful that he's still alive. One of his hands grabs my left wrist and bends it backwards at weird and painful angle. I let out a hiss and that only seems to tell him where my throat is. His other hand grabs my throat and squeezes hard, choking off anything else I could possibly say to get him to let go. Well this is a fine mess I've landed myself into. I know better than to struggle against Raph, he's way better at grappling that I am. Besides my struggling would only make him think that I really was here to attack him. I grabbed his wrist that has its hand wrapped around my throat with my right hand and pull backwards gently. Come on, you've got to say something. "R-Raphie…"

"Donnie?" His voice is muffled the sleep and I can practically hear the gears in his head begin to click together as he realizes what's going on. He lets go of me immediately and I can't help but step back and rub my sore wrist and neck. Shell, I'd forgotten how hard Raph can grab ahold of something, even when he is half asleep. I could just barely make out him sitting up in his hammock. I bet he is glaring at me for being so stupid as to half jump on him in the middle of the night. I can't believe I thought he was actually dead. "Jeez Don, what the shell were you thinking? I could've hurt you!"

I can already hear the self-blame in his voice, and he didn't even hurt me. If anyone here is to blame, it's me for being so stupid as to think that my completely healthy brother randomly passes away in the middle of the night. "Raphie, don't blame yourself. I should know better than to sneak up and startle a sleeping ninja."

"You wouldn't be saying that if I had caved in the side of your head!" The weak light spilling in from the doorway allows me to see him turn his head toward the clock. "What the shell," he mumbles as he looks back at me. "It's barely three in the morning, Don. Why did you wake me up?"

Okay, now I really do feel completely stupid. I woke him up for no reason and now he is probably more than a little angry at me for interrupting his rest. Great. "It's-it's nothing Raph. I'm sorry to have woken you. Goodnight." I vacate the room before he has a chance to say anything else, closing the door behind me with a soft click. I walked back to my room rubbing at my temples. I guess that nightmare did just a little bit more than freak me out. It terrified me into thinking that Raph was dead.

I close my door behind me and scrub at my tired eyes as I walk over to the bed. I need to get some sleep. Maybe I should go to the medicine cabinet and get some sleeping pills to keep me out for the rest of tonight. No, I shouldn't need to take those. It was just a nightmare. Nothing more and nothing less. Man, did I screw up my sheets or what? They're all rolled up in a ball at the foot of the bed except one corner, which is partially lying on the floor. I guess before I can go to sleep I need to straighten out a few things.

I'm just finishing remaking my bed when I hear the door open and close behind me. I guess it was just a high hope that Raph would go back to bed. "Don, I know you're not okay so don't try and hide it. Now what's wrong?"

I don't turn around as I smoothed out the rest of the blankets. "Nothing's wrong. Just go back to bed, Raph." I said that a little too fast to be taken seriously and my voice seriously cracked when I said that.

I hear Raph sigh behind me before he takes my elbow and forces me to turn towards him. "Don, only Mikey would half jump on me like that in the middle of the night. You would always say my name before walking into the room so I know something bad happened." In the faint light of one of my monitors, I watch as he jerks his head towards my bed. "And since your bed is all torn up and you're trembling like crazy." I'm not trembling. I'm just cold. It's chilly in here. "I know you had a nightmare. Do you want to tell me about it?"

I don't even want to think about it right now. I look away from him and over at the far side of the room. How can I say 'I had a dream where I killed you' and not break down completely? If I hadn't been able to tilt that sword then I would've killed him. Even if I hadn't decapitated him, I still would've sliced through the spinal column. He would've been paralyzed at best, dead at worse. I almost killed him. I-

"Hey. Hey, it's okay. Don't cry, Don. It's all right." No, it's not all right. And I'm not crying. I'm just…I'm just...okay, I'm crying. No use denying it after that sob. Raph wraps his arms around me and lets me bury my face in the crook of his neck. "It's all right Donnie…its okay." I feel his arms move, and then a blanket is draped over my shoulders. He actually brought that fuzzy blue blanket with him? Shell, I love this blanket. He goes back to holding me just as tight as he did before and continues to whisper comforting words into my ear as I literally bawl my eyes out into his shoulder.

It's taken awhile, but my harsh sobs have finally calmed down to the occasional hiccup every now and then. I'm tired enough by what has happened in the past twenty-four hours, but now I'm emotionally exhausted as well. Good thing Raph has such a tight grip on me, because I think I would have fallen over if he wasn't standing here. I'm leaning with pretty much all my weight into his chest and he's still just holding me, gently rubbing my shell. What is he trying to prove here, anyways? How long he can hold me up? Alright Raph, if you don't lay me now in the next ten minutes, I swear-

He's telepathic. How else could he have known I was wishing him imminent death unless he let me lay down? Of course I could've done without the whole tucking me in and wrapping every blanket on my bed around me, but at least I'm in bed now. Now I can finally get some rest. Well, I'll get some rest, once Raph stops poking me in the side. I shift backwards towards the wall, trying to avoid him and his insistent prodding better. Why is he- oh, I guess I figured out why he was poking me. He could've just asked for me to move over so he could lie down too, but that would've been so un-Raph like.

He lies on his plastron, and throws an arm over my shell. He's holding something in his hand; it just barely brushed against my arm. But even with all the blankets between me and whenever I can tell it's long and tapered at one end. Is that his sai? Why does he have one of those out? I bet his other one is in his other hand that he just tucked under the pillow. He better not accidentally stab me in the night. "Don't worry, Donnie," he whispers in my ear. "I always have your back. Even in your dreams."

I can't help but choke back another sob. He maybe protecting me from my dreams, but who's going to protect him? I don't want to close my eyes and see him decapitated every night. Please let my insomnia kick in. I don't want to go to sleep. I don't want to see him die again. His hand moves up and down my shell. I can't feel it but I know he's doing it by the way the blankets shift up and down my sides, legs and arms. "Don. Please, tell me what's wrong, bro."

"I-I…" I'm not going to tell him. He doesn't need to know. He doesn't need to worry anymore bout me. He's done enough. Everyone has done more then enough. I couldn't ask for a better family. I don't deserve them. "I almost killed you." I am such an idiot! I shouldn't have said that. I tried to turn away from him to face the wall but his arm and hand pushes down on my shell, keeping me lying prone next to him.

"But you didn't," he whispers in my ear as he keeps me lying next to him. "You didn't kill me, Don. You didn't kill any of us. Compared to you, none of us were even hurt. Stop blaming yourself for something you had no control over."

"But what if I did, Raphie?" I sniffle into the sheets. I will not cry in front of Raph again. I'm sick and tired of crying. "What if it was possible that I could have overridden the commands somehow? I could've stopped. I should have tried to find it more than watching you guys fight me. All I could think of was how you guys could take me down easier. Everything I did just got someone more hurt or I focused my attacks on them or-"

"Donatello, shut up!" he hisses venomously in my ear. "Just shut up and listen to me! There was nothing you could have done to prevent this. There was no way for you to know you had been programmed. There was no way for you to realize how dangerous of a fighter you were. You tried. You did your best to fight it. Subliminal messaging is impossible to over ride if you are the one with the messages." He cuddles closer to my side and holds me tighter against him. "Most importantly none of us blame you. Please stop blaming yourself. You did what you could." He nuzzles the side of my face slightly. "I don't like seeing you all upset Don. It doesn't suit you especially after how brave you've been."

When the shell have I been brave? I blink the tears out of my eyes and twist my head enough so that I could look up at him better. "Brave?" Shell, I sound like a terrified three year old who just got caught sneaking cookies out of the cookie jar. Is this mortification ever going to end?

I can just barely catch the faint smirk on his lips as he looks down at me. "Yes, brave." He rubs at my shell again as he waits for a moment. Whether it's to decide on what to say next or if he's waiting for me to get what he's talking about, I don't know. Before I can ask him to define what he says he speaks up. "I don't think any of us could have with stood everything you have in the past week. You were lost, confused, and scared out of your shell with no memory to speak of and having a group of mutants and people who you saw as complete strangers take care of you didn't help you much either. Then you were facing the knowledge that you may never be able to speak again and taking on a Foot stronghold on your own, and still you took it all in stride." Somehow I doubt that Raph is going to let me forget about how I stupid I was to take on the Foot like that alone. At least not for a long while to come, anyways. "You attacked us against your will, tried to kill us, and ended up strapped to the bed for eighteen hours, and that still didn't crack you. You took all that in stride as if it was nothing at all. I would call that being brave."

I can't help but scoff at him slightly. "And that's why I needed you to hold me still while April gave me a shot." Yeah, that wasn't my brightest moment ever. Even after it was all over I bolted when I saw a single needle. How can Raph call me brave when I ran from a sealed needle?

"Yet, you were able to give April a blood sample without even blinking later, and I didn't have to hold you. I wasn't even on the same side of town then. After everything you went through, you were brave, Don. I don't care what you could possible say to change my mind. You were brave. End of discussion."

My lips move several times as I try to come up with something to say. Nope, I've got nothing to counter that. "Raphie…thank you…" I want to say so much more than that, but Raph chuckles at me, interrupting what I was trying to say.

"You're welcome." He shifts slightly so that he is resting more comfortably against my side and lays his head on the pillow. "Now get some sleep and don't worry about it. Everything is going to be alright."

I nod my head and rest it on the pillow. My eyes are barely closed for a second before I realize something is wrong. I twist out of Raph's grip despite his protests and reach down towards the foot of the bed. I can almost…got it. I pull the extra blanket up and toss it over Raph's shell as I lay back down. He chuckles at me as I spread it over him and return to where I had been. He shakes his head as I cuddle back against his side. "Thanks, brainiac. Now get some rest."

"You're welcome," I mumble into the fabric as I let my eyes close.

…

Fabric shifts and the bed dips slightly as Raph rolls over. I wouldn't have noticed that except he sits up on the edge of the bed and a moment later his weight leaves all together. I frown behind closed eyelids. Where the shell is he going? It's still the middle of the night. "Raphie?" How the shell is he supposed to hear that? That could have barely been classified as a mumble for how quiet it was. It was more like a murmur almost completely smothered out by the pillow.

"It's alright, Don." I guess he heard me just fine. His hand lightly strokes down the back of my head and neck. "Go back to sleep."

"Where are you going?" I ask as I shift around on the bed better to get into a comfortable position again. I think he put my arm to sleep. It's numb.

He silent for almost an entire minute before answering, "To the turtles' room. I'll be back in a bit. Just go back to sleep." I barely remember mumbling okay and hearing him chuckle at me before darkness takes over again and I fall back into a dreamless sleep.

...

The bed dips again as Raph perches back on the edge of it. I guess he's back from the little turtle's room already. That was fast. He sits something down on the bedside table I have and then just sits there, watching me sleep. Well, I'm more like half asleep now. It's very disconcerting having people watch you when you are sleeping. It's board line being very creepy. Fingers gently caress the side of my face. Why hasn't he just laid back down and gone to sleep yet? "Raphie?"

"Guess again," a gentle voice echoes from above me. Leo? Why is Leo here? I open my eyes and blink several times so that I could see better. The faint light coming from my door and the lights from the computers across the room are almost too bright for me to see well. Even with my inability to see because of the glare, that is definitely Leonardo sitting on the edge of my bed. "Good morning."

I yawn as I shift to sit up. Man, am I sore. I feel like I slept like a log. At least I'm not stiff enough to not sit up. I rub my eyes before looking at Leo, who is smiling at my semi-awareness. If he says anything about me being cute, I swear I'm going to smack him one. "Leo, what are you doing here? It's the middle of the night."

"Not quite. You might want to look at the clock again." Why? What's so important about the- Wow. It's going on eleven. I should have been up five hours ago. "It's okay, Don. None one was expecting you to be up." But how did Raphie sneak out of the room- oh, when he was going to the bathroom. He might have been going to the bathroom, but after that I bet he went into the dojo for practice. He told me that he was going there just so I would go back to sleep and not try to go to practice. I guess I should be annoyed, but I still feel like I could sleep for another six hours. Am I ever going to not feel like falling asleep anytime soon? "Here," Leo says picking up a large mug he set on the table earlier. "I brought you a little pick-me-up."

Coffee? Leo brought me a cup of coffee? Mikey might occasionally bring me a coffee in bed, but Leo? I think someone has kidnapped my older brother and sent a clone copy to take his place. If this were the real Leo, he would have brought me a cup of tea and some toast. I doubt he would have even let me sit up. "Alright, who are you and where is Leo?"

He smiles at me as he sees the humor behind my words. "I figured that you would prefer that over tea. It seemed like you were getting tired of tea all the time, anyways." He then proceeds to chuckle at the face I give him as I show exactly how much I thought of that tea he gave me at every turn the past few days. "I'm sorry, Donnie," he says after a moment of laughter. "I know how much you hate tea, but every time you drank it you seemed calmer."

"Didn't that have something to do with the chamomile and various other herbal drugs that were added to it?" I raise an eye ridge at him while I say this. I'm never going to be able to drink tea again without thinking that there is some form of relaxant or sedative in it. I think I'm scarred for life.

Leo frowns at my statement. "We didn't drug every cup of tea we gave you, Don. You would calm down on your own. I think that there were only four cups that had any form of herbal remedies in it. And there wasn't enough chamomile in any of those cups to knock you out."

So I drank tea and calmed down on my own? Out of everyone in the family, I drink it the least. Mikey and Leo are the tea fanatics. Raph isn't a big fan of the more eastern teas, but something about the English teas he loves. Earl Gray is one of his favorites. In fact, the only time I really drink tea anymore is when I'm sick or for a special occasion, because Master Splinter brings out that ancient teapot and makes a batch for everyone to have four or more cups each. That has to be it. The tea reminded me of Master Splinter and in turn reminded me I was safe. That's why I would calm down whenever I had tea. "I must have been thinking about Master Splinter subconsciously when I was drinking it."

"Speaking of Master Splinter, he wants to see you." I look over the rim of my mug at Leo. There's something about the way he's looking at me right now… I know that this meeting with Sensei isn't going to be very pleasant. What the shell did I do wrong? I hope Leo didn't tell him I was messing around in the dojo. Who am I trying to kid? This is Leo I'm talking about.

"I take it back. You're Leo." Even though I'm staring at the coffee mug, I can sense his confusion. I know he doesn't do it on purpose, but Leo is such a tattletale. It may be because he doesn't want to see any of us get hurt, but it still is annoying when he tells Master Splinter every little detail about something that has happened and -ultimately- who was doing what when they weren't suppose to. "You didn't have to tell Master Splinter I was messing around with the naginata in the dojo earlier."

"I didn't." Wait a second, what? "I did tell him how you got it, but I didn't say anything about you messing around with it. I think that's one of the reasons he wants to talk to you." I guess I stand corrected; I guess Leo does withhold some information from Master Splinter. "Now come on. Don't worry. I don't think Master Splinter knows anything about that." Did he just wink at me?

I down the last gulp of coffee, and then hand the mug to Leo so I can get out of bed without having to worry about dropping it. Raph got me that mug several years ago from somewhere. He still won't tell me where, but the shape of it is just perfect for coffee. A wide mouth, a comfortable handle, and the added bonus of an extra thick cup wall that lets little heat out. I can grab a hold of the mug itself after pouring boiling hot coffee in it and not feel any of the radiant heat.

Leo waits while I dress in my pads and mask before leading the way out of the room. Please tell me he's not going to escort me all the ways to Splinter's room. It's not like I'm planning on getting out of this upcoming lecture or whatever. The television is blaring, I guess that means that Mikey is watching it, and an equal amount of noise is coming from the bathroom. Heavy metal music, by the sound of it. Raph must be in the shower. Either that or there's a man dying in there...

I'm surprised when Leo heads towards the kitchen when we reach the bottom of the stairs. I guess he's full of surprises this morning. As I start towards the door to his room, I can hear Mikey laughing at the antics of the cartoon characters that are on. I guess that my earlier guess is true. I pause for a moment, just listening to the normal sounds of the lair after practice. It's hard to believe that only a few days ago all of this was completely alien to me. I sigh and take the last few steps to the door, and knock on the frame. "Enter, Donatello." That's my cue.

I slid the door open and shut it behind me as I enter Master Splinter's room. Man...he really has been burning the incense today. It's powerful enough that I can feel my nostrils burning faintly. He's kneeling behind his table, and I move to sit opposite of it. His eyes are closed, and if it wasn't for the slight twitch in his whiskers I won't even had known if he had knew I was in the room. He has a teapot sitting on the table between us and there is a small cup for each of us. Maybe this is why Leo brought me a cup of coffee this morning instead of forcing me to drink tea. He knew I was going to be sharing a whole pot with Sensei. As long as it's not chamomile, I think I'll be fine…

"My son." Watching Splinter come out of meditation has always reminded me of a cat lounging in the sun. He just has this calm and contented look on his face that looks so much like an overly happy cat. "I am glad that you are feeling better this morning." Shell, when he says it like that I feel like I did something wrong and that there is a big 'however' coming up in this conversation. "However…" See, I knew it. "What we have to focus on now is how to keep you feeling well and how to best speed up your recovery." Well, at least I'm not getting lectured for something that I didn't do, but I have a feeling that I'm not going to like where this is heading.

"I have spoken to both Raphael and Miss O'Neil on this matter, and they agree with me." Okay, now I know I am not going to like this conversation. "For the next three days you need to rest and that means-" Oh no. Here it comes. "-That you are not to train or do any other physically-tasking activity." Okay, it could be worst but it could be better, too. I guess I should be thankful that he didn't say anything about- "And that does not mean that you may sit in front of your computer for the next few days." Now it's officially considered worst.

"Yes, Sensei…" I know better then to fight with him when he's like this. Besides, I bet he's already told everyone that I'm to be resting for the next few days. That means that I won't be able to really do anything without getting caught and in trouble and –knowing my bountiful amount of good luck- hogtied to the bed. I hope I don't get tied to the bed again.

Master Splinter nods his head. Out of the four of us, I'm the only one who complies with Sensei when it involves my own health. Leo will sometimes do it, but only after he's tried every conceivable way to get out of resting. Even then, it's more like he passes out when he's finally forced into bed. I really won't call that resting. I watch as he takes the pot and fills the small mugs in front of us. I wait until he's place the teapot back on its hot mat and takes his cup before I take my own and cradle it in my hands. For a moment both of us just watch the steam roll out of the cups before taking our first sips. Green tea, with no extra 'relaxers' added to it, is by far one of my favorite teas.

"Now, Donatello." I look up from my tea to see him giving me this look that let's me know he's figured out something before me. But what has he figured out? "I believe it's time you told me what really happened between you and Karai."

I knew he knew I wasn't telling them something. I guess I am officially in the hot seat now. I can't help but swallow the mouthful of tea I have a bit harshly. "I didn't want you to worry about me, so I didn't say anything…"

"I gathered that, my son." He's smiling at me. That's always a good sign. "However, the past shouldn't be hidden in the shrouds of your mind. Raphael said that you had suffered from a nightmare last night." I should have known Raph would have said something about my untimely wake up call for him last night. I'm surprised he didn't complain about it last night. He didn't even tease me about it yesterday. Of course, I rarely start crying in front of any of them… "My son, the chains of the past sometimes can only be removed by the words in the present."

Translation: Tell him what really happened that night and don't leave out any details. I sigh and stare into my mug for a moment longer before taking another sip. I better get this over with because I doubt I'll be allowed to leave the room until Master Splinter has heard what he's wanted to hear. "I decided to go it alone because I didn't want to see the guys get hurt. I didn't want them to lose their memories like I had." He's nodding and smiling. I guess that he knew I was going to say that. Actually, I think I said that yesterday when Raph was trying to find a reason to rip off my shell for going alone. Who would have guessed that yesterday would have seemed like years ago or that it feels like this all started eons ago. Well, I guess that technically since I relived my entire life in the past week I can see why it feels like it's been so long.

"The patrols were in a predictable pattern and once I had memorized it, it all came down to the timing of who was going to walk by when. I slipped past them and into the compound through an open bathroom window." I'll leave out the nastier details of that little experience. "And I was able to find the lab that I was held in and found the case of chemicals and the notebook."

"And no one knew of your arrival?"

I can't help but smile at him. "Sensei, you taught me well. No one even knew I was in there." I feel myself frown as I remember what happened next. "And it would have stayed that way, except Saka and his head ninja decided to walk through the door at that moment." Master Splinter is frowning too. I doubt it's for the same reason as to why I'm frowning. In a way I am so glad that Karai dealt with him and not my brothers or I. There's no telling how they would have reacted- no, actually I know exactly how they would have reacted. I just don't think that they could have justified it after they had killed him.

"We ended up getting into a fight as they tried to catch me again and through a series of unfortunate events," I think I'll keep my pride here and not say anything. I'm pretty sure Splinter would have me doing extra katas and tumbling exercises if he learned the details of how I ended up on that table. "They were able to partially pin me down to an examination table." His ears have perked up more meaning that I have his full attention now. I hope to shell he doesn't tell the guys about this. They won't let me forget this embarrassment anytime soon. "That was when I smashed my watch, which sent the signal to set of the emergency beacon in the shell cells."

The look Sensei is giving me is a mixture of worry and pride. An odd combination, if any. "Donatello. Before you continue, may I say that I have never been gladder of your technical knowledge before today." I feel my cheeks heat up and can only imagine of how bright I'm blushing right now. Well, at least the red isn't reflecting off my tea yet. "Had it not been for that watch, I doubt any of us would have realized that you were missing until that morning."

"I was able to sneak past all four of you?" I had thought that Leo would have known that I was gone. As I walked past his bedroom door, he had stirred and I thought he was waking up. Usually if one of us sneaks out of the lair when we're not supposed to, Leo usually wakes up and comes looking for us saying he felt 'something was wrong'. I can't believe that I was able to make a clean get-away out of this.

"Donatello, you were not the only one traumatized by this experience. As they say in my stories: 'You never know what you truly have until it is lost'. Each of us has learned how much we have come to depend on you from this experience and I doubt that any of us will be able to forget what has happened anytime soon." Talk about leaving me speechless... I-I don't know what to say. "Now please, Donatello, how did you manage to free yourself and meet up with your brothers in the storage room?"

Right, the story. "Karai and the rest of the Foot showed up." Sensei's ears have tilted backwards slightly, meaning that he is not in a good mood right about now. He never has been that fond of Karai since she tried to kill us. I've never been that fond of her either since then. "As far as I can figure, the group that kidnapped me was more of a branch-off of the actual Foot. They were a whole other faction of the clan operating with the Foot outfits as more of a cover then anything else. She freed me, gave me my bo, and told me to leave."

"And what of Saka? Did she let him escape as well?"

Sorry to dash your hopes for revenge, Sensei. "No, she killed him and his commander before me." Well technically, Saka was killed after I had left the room. But judging on how mad Karai looked, I doubt that he was still breathing after that. "That's when most of the fighting started and I ended up being attacked in the storage room. The cavalry arrived then."

Master Splinter is quiet for a while after that, obviously lost in his own thoughts. My tea is nearly gone and what's left is too cold to appreciate fully. I really shouldn't drink another cup of tea on an empty stomach with nothing but coffee in it, but there really isn't anything else to do. I pour myself another cup and wait patiently from Sensei's thoughts to mull over what I just told him.

What seems like hours later but in reality can only be minutes, Master Splinter stands and walks around the table to kneel next to me. I set my cup down but before I can turn to face him, he's wrapping his arms around me. Master Splinter's arms may look really thin, but they belay how strong he really is. He pulls me into a hug, allowing me to rest my head on his shoulder as he runs a hand up and down my shell. When was it the last time he hugged me? Master Splinter has never been big on the whole touchy feel kind of thing but I guess that this experience was bad enough for him that he's making an exception. Well, I did force him to live through his biggest nightmare. I can understand why he's more than just a little upset.

He holds me for a long time after that. He doesn't say anything, he just holds me. Lightly stroking my shell and occasionally the back of my head and neck. My neck has always been a weak spot for me. I think it has something to do with my turtle heritage. By either stroking or petting it I turn into a large pile of happy goo and my brothers have been exploiting that for the past week. And now Sensei is using it to keep me still. It's not like I'm planning on going anywhere anytime soon anyways.

"Now, my son, will you tell me the cause of your nightmares last night?" The briefest flash of Raphael's head rolling across the floor completely severed from his body, flashes quickly through my mind and I can't help but shiver slightly. That dream had been so real... "Donatello?"

Right, explanation time. I've never been one to admit my weaknesses, but at least I'm more willing to talk about them, unlike Raph and Leo. I think Mikey is the only one of us that openly says what scares him. "I nearly killed you all. It's bad enough I hurt everyone as much as I did, but I nearly killed Leo, Raph, Mikey, and attacked April and you." I sigh heavily as I glare into my mug of tea. "If April hadn't have found out how to take me down from the notebook, then there is no telling what would have happened."

"My son, there is no sense in worrying about what you can not change. What has happened has happened. There is no sense in dwelling on what has happened. We must move on with life in the present." Splinter is playing the voice of reason here, but no matter how many times I have already thought about it, I still come back to the fact that I nearly killed my family. Hey, why is he smiling like he knows something that I don't? "Besides, though I do not agree with Raphael's choice to fight crime as a masked vigilante, that time helped him to greatly improve his manrikigusaris techniques." Sensei has a point. If I got into a fight with Raph when he had one of those, it wouldn't have mattered if I had used a naginata. He would have had me wrapped up and hog-tied before I could have blinked. He did tell Casey to go get one of them during the fight. I would have been done for when he brought that to Raph.

Still... "But Sensei... Before all that...I nearly threw a knife at Mikey. I dropped that half pipe on Leo's head. I almost decapitated Raph...and there was nothing I could do to stop it." Except for that voice. I've heard someone say that before. Who was it? "No matter what I tried I couldn't stop myself."

"That is not true, my son." Huh? What? What the shell is Master Splinter talking about now? I wait patiently as he takes another sip of his tea. Okay, make that impatiently. "Even if you didn't have full control of your body, you still made the effort to protect your brothers for your actions. As you said, instead of throwing a knife at Michelangelo, you choose to throw a bottle of dish soap. When Leonardo pushed you to the ground to protect you from the falling debris, you covered the back of his head with your free hand." I did? I don't remember doing that. It would explain why he was shaken up, and hadn't had a concussion afterwards, though. "Instead of decapitating Raphael, you angled the blade so that it imbedded in his shell instead. And, when you had just woken, you choose to attack your brother with ground pepper and not the kitchen knife that was also within reach."

I had nearly forgotten about that. When I first woke up and April tried to get a blood sample from me, I flipped and attacked them, trying to get away. I'm so glad I threw pepper in his face and hadn't not spun around with a knife. Sensei must have noticed that and called Raph off from trying to break down the bathroom door to get me out of there. If I had nearly pulled a knife on Leo then there was no telling what I would have ended up doing if they kept going aggressively after me. What ever would have happened I bet it wouldn't have ended well. If it wasn't for that voice-

That's it! That's why I didn't hurt them. I heard Master Splinter telling us not to hurt each other. That's what made me not pick up the knife and attack Leo. Every time I came close to aggressively attack one of them, I heard Splinter's voice. "I think that I should be thanking you here, Sensei." He's waiting for me to continue, but he doesn't look that surprised. Did he already know how I was able to keep myself from hurting them? "When I was aggressively attacking one of them, I would hear your voice telling me not to hurt them."

Somehow I knew that he wasn't going to be surprised by that little revelation. "When the four of you were younger, all of you had difficulties understanding your own strengths and weaknesses. There were many times that the four of you would be playing and, because you four were too young to understand your limitations, there would be an accident where one of you would hurt another. I knew that it was nothing more then a misunderstanding, but the four of you had to learn control if you were to practice the art of ninjitsu. When one of you accidentally injured another, I would remind the four of you to know your limits and not to hurt one of your brothers."

"And that's exactly what I heard, Sensei. 'Do not hurt your brothers'." But I did. I lower my eyes to rest on the empty cup in my hands. I never noticed that chip on the rim before. I nearly-

"Donatello." Uh oh, what did I do now? I look back at Splinter and see what I can only describe as forgiveness. "It is time to put this behind us. Let it go."

My lips move soundlessly as I try to come up with something else to say. I don't think that I am ever going to be able to just let this go. I'm not going to be able to forget this anytime soon but I shouldn't burden my family with it any longer. I'll just keep it to myself. I'll never forget what I almost did and I'll do everything in my power to prevent it from happening again. I put the cup back on the table and stand up giving Master Splinter a bow that he deserves. "Hai, Sensei."

He waits until I stand back up before saying, "As I said earlier, Donatello, for the next three days you are to rest. Michelangelo should have something ready for you to eat by now." I bow again, before heading for the door. "Donatello." I look over my shoulder to see a wide smile splitting Master Splinter's face. "I am very proud to have you as one of my sons." I can tell I'm blushing as I give a hasty bow and a mumbled 'thanks' before slipping out the door. The television is off and I can smell pancakes and bacon wafting from the kitchen, so I guess Mikey is in there cooking.

I hope there are strawberries on those pancakes…

…

I can do this.

I know I can do this.

It's been three long weeks since I was talking with Sensei about the truth of what had happened in the lab. Through out that time I had to deal with my family's hovering, complete boredom, and the embarrassing ability to fall asleep just about anywhere. Luckily, that last one only lasted for about the first week of my recovery, but it was embarrassing nonetheless. I fell asleep in the middle of dinner once. The last thing I remembered was eating, and the next thing I knew, Raph was picking me up, telling me to go back to sleep while Mikey and Leo finished clearing off the table. I sigh. At least I only did it that once.

I stop thinking about the past and focus on what I'm doing. I'm pretty sure I have everything I'm going to need for this. Yup, everything is in the bag. I zip it closed and swing it over my shoulder to rest against my thigh. My bo is already tucked into my belt behind my shell, and my shell cell is tucked into my belt, along with my suko spikes and a dozen shurikens. I'm ready to get going.

I step out of the door to my room and calmly start to walk down the hall towards the stairs. Mikey and Raph are arguing about who won that last match in whatever fighting game they are playing. The trick to hiding in plain sight is just to act normal and judging how neither of them have so much as even glanced this way then I know I'm doing it right. Leo's not in his room, but I can see the light coming from his dojo. He'll be in there for a while. It's time for his evening meditation, so Master Splinter will be in his room. This is the perfect time to sneak out of the lair.

I know I shouldn't be leaving like this, but I was given a clear bill of health after a rather through physical examine by Raph. I think I may have taught him too well. This trip should be relatively quick anyways. I'm just going up to the junkyard and back. It should only take me twenty minutes tops. I'm not even going to look for anything. I just need to know if I can do this. I need to know if I can be on my own again without having a panic attack.

It's like an irrational fear that has been developing as I've healed. I doubt I'm actually suffering from a case of PTS, but if I am I rather find out now so I can get it addressed as soon as possible. My brothers aren't always going to be able to go with me every time I need to go topside to a junkyard and there are times when the four of us need to split up during patrol. I need to make sure that I can be on my own again before something like that happens. There's no telling what may happen if we need to go in different directions and I can't be alone. I could get the one of the four of us hurt or all four of us killed.

I slow my steps without trying to look obvious, the last thing I need is someone to realize that I'm trying to sneak out. I look out of the corner of my eyes again to make sure that no one's paying that much attention to me. Alright, I'm right next to the door and...now! I'm out the door before it's barely open a sliver and pulling down on the section of pipe to reclose the door before its even halfway open. Okay I'm out and -as far as I know- no one saw me leave. I take a deep breath. I didn't think I would have been able to do that. However, I wouldn't put it past one of my brothers to fake not seeing me leave, only to give me a few minute's head start and then follow me. I better wait a few minutes to make sure no one is doing that right now.

I stand outside the door for almost fifteen minutes, waiting to see if anyone comes out looking for me. I can't believe I did that. I've never been very good at stealth, so how the shell did I manage this without my overly protective family knowing? Well, technically, I said I was going to be lying down. They probably still think I'm in bed or something. I guess being paranoid didn't help me any. I slowly turn away still watching the door expecting at any moment one of them to come running through it to yell at me. Still nothing. I guess I did get out without them knowing. I shake my head as I walk away. I can't decide if I should feel proud or be upset that they didn't notice me leave.

I head in the direction of the junkyard, walking slowly and taking in the surroundings. Nothing looks different but that doesn't mean anything. I'm not feeling any kind of threatening presence and other then the dripping of water and the occasional squeaking of rats it's quite. I watch the shadows as they play across the walls and litter the floors. There's nothing in these sewers that can hurt me and now I feel like a complete idiot. What the shell was I thinking? Post traumatic stress disorder indeed. Yeah, right.

I start to relax as I stroll through the sewers. Almost nothing has changed since the last time I headed towards the junkyard. Well, at least until I got there anyways. Still, I can't help but notice, turning my head from side to side, watching the shadows pass. I guess I am being a little overly cautious. I highly doubt the Foot ninjas are going to be in the sewers, especially after the beat-down back at the lab. They had to be hurting after that little episode. I'm actually surprised that we were able to get away from that fight without any of us being hurt. Well, I was kind of hurt during the fight but that came from before the guys actually showed up.

I kind of wish they were here. I've tried to get used to them always hovering around me. It's weird to be walking through the sewers without an escort. I've always enjoyed having my own space but this is kind of ridiculous. However, I have no one to blame but myself. It was my choice to walk out of the lair tonight without telling anyone. Shell, they are so going to freak out when they realize I'm gone. Hopefully I can get home before anyone notices I'm missing. Heh… aren't those some famous last words? That was exactly what I was thinking when I left the lair that night I was-

Wait…what was that?

That wasn't a rat or drip…

Whatever it is, it's large…

And moving much too quietly for something its size…

Shell…

I continue to walk normally, despite the fact that I'm completely focused on whatever is following me. Who could it be? Is the Foot really sneaking around down here tonight? Am I being paranoid for nothing, and this is just a figment of my imagination? Or did one of my brothers really see me walk out the door? Despite the lecture I can get from Leo, or any of them for that matter, I still hope that one of my brothers is stalking me and not some Foot operative about to get his head bashed in.

I'd better be ready just in case. About a hundred paces of this tunnel there's a split, with the right title leading down to a Park Avenue runoff. There will be plenty of room to fight with my bo there, but that is also a good place to be ambushed. I better stay away from there. Standing my ground here in the tunnel wouldn't be a good idea either. The ankle deep water makes it difficult to tell if there's anything lying underneath to trip me, and the narrow passageway makes it hard to effectively use my staff. Of course if I can get down near Chelsea, the tunnels widen not enough for me to fight in. I'll try to get down there. If worse comes to worse, I remade that watch with the emergency signal in it so I can get-

Oh, shell…

Don't tell me…

I sigh, stop moving, and turn around to face the darkness behind me. I fold my arms across my plastron and halfheartedly glare into the shadows hiding part of the left side of the tunnel. "Okay Leo, you caught me. You can come out now." I say in a semi-exasperated voice. I knew I didn't get out of the lair without anyone noticing me leave. Sneaking past Leo is like trying to convince Raph not fight. It just doesn't happen.

"Close, but you got the wrong turtle, bro." Well okay I didn't expect this but I guess I should have. Of course Mikey would've followed me out of the lair. He's been babying me so much that I nearly wanted to scream at him to leave me alone a few times. More than a few times actually. Mikey steps shadows with a timid smile on his face. It's a smile that I can't help, but return with a slight shake of my head. "Leo's actually the one stuck to the ceiling and Raph is over there," he says jerking his finger at the wall across from him.

"Good one, Mikey. It's a wonder you can do anything without telling someone about it." How can Leo drop from the ceiling, admonish Mikey, and land silently on his feet without even blinking? He always makes things looks so much easier than they actually are. He can be such a pain in the shell sometimes. Mikey doesn't even seem to acknowledge what Leo said except for giving him a quick wink. On the other side of the tunnel, Raph calmly stepped out of the shadows of folds his arms like I have mine. "Sorry for following you like this, Donnie, but when you just left the lair we were worried about you."

"Yeah, it's not like you just sneak out the door. And even if I didn't say that you checked out okay, that does not mean you can scamper out of the lair without telling anyone."

Oh boy, Raph is not looking too happy with me right now. "Sorry guys but I…I…" Shell, now that I'm about to tell them why I'm sneaking around out here, it sounds so stupid. What can I say to them without sounding like an idiot?

"Hey, Donnie, don't worry about it." Mikey throws and arm over my shoulders and gives me a light punch in the shoulder closest to him. "Just remember that Raph is all bark and no bite. Now, why did you sneak out? Are you sneaking away to a party? Can I come?!"

"No, Mikey I'm not going to a party. I just…I wanted to go out for a walk. That's all." Raph gives a muffled cough that sounds more like a swear I've heard Casey and him use multiple times, and Leo is giving me that look that tells me he knows that I'm lying and I should just give it up and tell him the truth. I always have been bad at lying to people. Mikey on the other hand can lie through his teeth and people don't even bat an eyelash anymore. "Alright." I shouldn't drag this out too long. I know that they are eventually going to get me to talk. "I wanted to make sure I could head out on my own. I wanted to make sure I wasn't suffering from any mental disorders. I…I also needed to go back to the junkyard and get a water pump, at least ten feet of phone line, and a capacitor." I give the three of them a sheepish grin as they look at me dumbfounded. Wait for it…

"That's it? Usually when we go to the junkyard you need the van to haul everything you found back with you." Mikey lets go of my shoulder and points down the tunnel towards my destination. "Onward!" he shouts, doing a dramatic pose that looks like it came from one of his epic role-playing games.

Raph calmly walks over and smacks him over the back of the head. "What is with you, shell-fer-brains?" he asks as Mikey rubs at the back of his head and pouts. "We're supposed to be quiet."

"You guys don't have to follow me." Yeah, right Don, like they're going to believe that. "I can go on my own."

"Sorry, Donnie." Wha-Hey! Stop with the noogie, Raph! "But it's been awhile since we got out of the lair, too. What'd you say, fearless? A trip to the junkyard, followed by a jaunt across town?"

Leo crosses his arms and looks down at the water pooling around his ankles for a moment before smiling and looking back up at the three of us. "Sure, why not? Besides, you need the practice, Raph."

Raph was probably about to say some kind of snide remark back at Leo, but Mikey cut in. "Yeah, Raph. You've been getting lazy."

"Lazy?" Well, at least Raph let me out of the headlock. I wish I had brought some earplugs though. "I'll show you lazy!" Mikey's scream is just going to echo through out the tun- OW! Man, that hurt. I surprised that Mikey can even reach that octave. Both Leo and I lower our hands away from our ears and watch as Mikey runs down the tunnel with Raph hot on his heels.

"We should probably catch up with them." I glance at Leo who's watching me. He smiles and jerks his head after them. "Come on."

"Hey, Leo?" He hesitates and waits for me to say my piece. At least Mikey and Raph have moved down the tunnel enough that I don't have to yell over them to talk to Leo. And Raph was telling Mikey to be quiet? He can be such a hypocrite. "You guys don't have to do this."

His face goes hard. I have a feeling I just found a brick wall that's not going to give anytime soon. "Yes, we do."

"But-"

"Donnie," Shell, Leo, stop interrupting me! "You weren't the only one who suffered through this. You're not the only one still recovering. Now come on. Let's get going before they wake up half of New York."

Leo's right. This isn't all about me. They suffered just as much as I have if not more. "Leo, I'm sor-"

"Don't you dare say you're sorry again, Don. You've said that way too much in the past few weeks. Now come on." He starts off towards the two wrestling turtles, "Let's go." He jumps over them, breaking up the wrestling match and catch their attention. "Last one to the junkyard has to clean the dojo by himself for a week!" Wait, what? I'm off, on Leo's heels as Raph and Mikey struggle to separate themselves from each other. I don't want to be the last one there. Cleaning the dojo alone can take most of the day.

As the four of us continue to barrel through the tunnels in a foot race to the junkyard, I find myself thinking about everything that has happened to me and how lucky I am to have my family with me. If it hadn't been for them, I doubt I would still be me and not some insane assassin for the Foot. I might not even be alive if it wasn't for them. Everyone may think that I need to stop saying 'I'm sorry' and 'thank you' but I can't think of any other way to express how much they've helped me through all of this. Every now and then they remind me that 'it's what a family does' and that they're just glad I'm back.

And I'm so glad I found them again too.

Of course, that's not going to stop me from making and leaving in some very conspicuous spots new 'toys' for all of them…

_~Fin~_


End file.
